Attacker shot dead after taking hostages in French supermarket

A gunman, who had taken hostages in a supermarket in the Southern French town of Trebes, has been shot. With details still emerging Prime Minister Édouard Philippe and President Emmanuel Macron have both stated that all signs pointed towards a ‘terrorist act’. According to BFM TV, the attacker, reported to be 26-year-old Redouane Lakdim, was spotted with grenades on him and asked for the release of Paris attacker Salah Abdeslam, who is currently on trial in Brussels. Officials have confirmed that three people have been killed and 20 hostages were then released. It is widely reported that a French military officer swapped himself for a hostage in the supermarket, leaving his phone line open during the operation so police could monitor the situation. A source at the Interior Ministry reported said: “[The death toll of two] is a temporary assessment as it could unfortunately get worse. Three people are wounded, including one of them seriously” The same news channel claim that the suspect shouted ‘I am a Daesh solder’, declaring allegiance to the ISIS group. Other French media outlets have reported that the hostage-taker in Trebes is of Moroccan descent and was known to security authorities. Earlier on March 23, a policeman was shot and wounded while jogging with colleagues in Carcassonne, a 15-minute drive away from the Southern town of Trebes, as an attempt was made to run down four police officers. It is unclear whether there is a link between attacks, and French authorities have since confirmed that the shoulder injury suffered by the policeman is not serious. France is still on high alert following a number of terrorist attacks in France since 2015, starting with the attack at the Charlie Hebdo offices in January of that year. Following that there were notable attacks in Paris in November of that same year, at the Stade de France and Bataclan Theatre, as well as attacks in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray and Nice in July 2016 and Marseille in November last year.