Terrorist attacks leave over a hundred dead in Paris

Some reports put the number of dead at 158.

There were at least seven attacks, all in the east and north of the city.

In one venue alone - the Bataclan concert venue - over a hundred people were killed. A heavy metal band were in the middle of a concert when gunmen opened fire and threw grenades into the crowd.

Witnesses say the firing lasted for at least fifteen minutes. The attackers were apparently bent on killing as many people as possible, leaving the security forces no choice but to storm the building before more people were killed.

Given the nature of the concert it is likely that most of the victims in the audience would have been young people.

As well as the Bataclan the attack sites included the restaurants Le Carillon, La Belle Equipe, Le Petit Cambodge, and a fast food restaurant near the national football stadium. There were reports of gunfire at another site as yet unidentified.

The clearly shocked French President Francois Hollande described the attacks as 'unprecedented' and called on the country to stay strong in the face of fear. He said France will be victorious.

Earlier the president had been watching his country play football against Germany in the Stade de France. It was near there that the first of the suicide bombers struck at a fast food restaurant close by.

The game was abandoned and he left for the Interior Ministry. Spectators were kept in the stadium for some time to stop them spilling on to the streets.

With about an hour a series of other attacks had taken place including the assault on the Bataclan concert hall.

A restaurant was attacked in the 11th district by a suicide bomber. Reports say eleven people were killed there.

Source - EURONEWS