Charlie Hebdo: Three gunmen on the run after killing 12 in Paris attack while vigils organised around the world

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The three gunmen thought to be responsible for the attack on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, in which 12 people were killed, are still on the run. 

The attack took place at mid-morning today in the publication's Parisian office. 
 
Four of the victims have so far been named: publishing director Stephane Charbonnier, known as Charb, and three cartoonists –  Jean Cabu, who was known by his last name, Bernard 'Tignous" Verlhac and George Wolinski. 
 
Two of those killed were police officers.  A further 20 people are thought to have been injured in the shoot-out, five of them seriously. 
 
Several other staff managed to shelter on the roof of the building, where this video was filmed. It appears to show the gunmen calling “Allahu Akbar”, meaning “God is the greatest” in Arabic. 
 
 
Witnesses claimed the men entered the offices of the magazine with Kalashnikovs. It has been reported that they asked for individuals by name. 
 
The gunmen are thought to have escaped in a black sedan. The image below appears to show them taking aim at a police vehicle. 
 


(Source: Getty)

 
Vigils are being held in Paris and London tonight, as well as other cities around the world.  
 
The London event was organised for Trafalgar Square at 6pm. A Facebook page described it as a “Peaceful gathering in support of Charlie Hebdo, Freedom of press and peace”. 
 
Attendees were requested to print out posters with the phrase Je Suis Charlie, which become a top trending hashtag on Twitter today as social media users expressed their sadness and support for the editorial team's no-holds barred attitude towards free speech.
 
 
The Parisian event started at 6pm local time in Place de la Republique.  
 
The Facebook page for this vigil said: “Against all forms of hatred , the defense of freedom of expression and peaceful tribute to the memory of the victims will be the only two unique demands of this rally.
 
“We are Charlie and we are united.”
 
Other vigils are being organised in the US and Canada. 
 


(Source: Getty)

Eyewitnesses used Twitter to communicate the events as they unfolded. The tweet below says: "They fired twice the bullets went through the door and window"

https://twitter.com/MalikaF24/status/552784738386464769

https://twitter.com/WilliamMolinie/status/552786438602129408

French president Francois Hollande travelled to the scene of the attack, which he condemned as an act of terrorism.  He said: "No barbaric act will never extinguish the freedom of the press . We are a united country"

This map shows the estimated location of Charlie Hebdo's offices in Paris's 11th arrondissement:

Charlie Hebdo has previously published a series of cartoons called “Life of Mohammed”, which resulted in the offices being attacked in 2011. In 2007 it was taken to court for insulting Islam after it republished the infamous Danish cartoons.

This is the last tweet published by the magazine, which went out less than an hour ago (10:28am GMT) 

https://twitter.com/Charlie_Hebdo_/status/552773881283764224

David Cameron has issued a statement condemning the attacks. "The murders in Paris are sickening. We stand with the French people in the fight against terror and defending the freedom of the press."