Suspected Gunmen Killed Amid Chaotic Scenes At French Hostage Sites

Update (4:30 pm):

Jeremy Scahill of The Intercept reports that a source within al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has provided the online publication with a full statement claiming responsibility for the attack against the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris.

Earlier…

News outlets reported gunshots and explosions at two hostage sites, one in Paris and the other north of the city, where suspects linked to this week’s Charlie Hebdo shooting were holding hostages.

According to recent updates from the Guardian’s live coverage, French police stormed a printworks warehouse in Dammartin-en-Goele, where two suspects for the Charlie Hebdo shootings, identified as brothers Cherif and Said Kouachi, were holding at least one hostage. At nearly the same time, gunshots were reported at a kosher supermarket in east Paris where several more hostages were being held by what appeared to be a lone gunmen who has reported links to the Kouachi brothers.

Agence France-Presse reported that the Charlie Hebdo suspects who were holed up at the warehouse came out firing on security forces. According to French media sources, the Kouachi brothers were killed in what was described as a “coordinated assault” by law enforcement.

The hostage at the printworks warehouse has been freed, while a police officer at the scene was injured, AFP said.

According to BBC, hostages could also be seen coming out from the Hypercacher supermarket.