Explosions heard outside Toulouse building where suspected gunman holed up

[Ian David]

Source: The Globe and Mail

The Associated Press
Published Wednesday, Mar. 21, 2012 12:05AM EDT
Last updated Wednesday, Mar. 21, 2012 6:42PM EDT

Three explosions were heard early Thursday outside Toulouse apartment building where French riot police demanded the surrender Wednesday of a gunman who reportedly boasted of shooting seven victims in an al-Qaeda-linked terror spree aimed at “bringing France to its knees.”

Hundreds of heavily armed police cordoned off streets around an apartment building in the southwestern city of Toulouse after a pre-dawn raid to arrest the suspect, Mohammed Merah, erupted into a firefight. Three police were wounded, the suspect remained holed up in the apartment and negotiations with the 24-year-old Frenchman of Algerian descent dragged on for hours.



Read more: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/three-explosions-heard-outside-toulouse-building-where-suspected-gunman-holed-up/article2376138/

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Hat-tip to: https://twitter.com/#!/mpoppel/status/182596770893795328

[jannyk]

1. BBC Covering it Live all day (link)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/17455224

[Ian David]

2. I want one of those motor scooters!

http://www.yamaha-motor.com/sport/products/modelhome/607/home.aspx

[JDPriestly]

3. The Socialist candidate, Hollande, had a good chance to win the presidency of France.

Sarkozy is making the most of this moment. His campaign will gain momentum because of the crisis.

Sarkozy is not to be trusted. I'm waiting to find out more about this matter. A French Algerian Muslim?

[dipsydoodle]

5. By pure concidence I have read of late

that some of the old issues from sixty or so years ago between France and Algeria were resurfacing.

This may or may not be part of that :

Algerian dissident silenced by France.

Paris, France - The Arab Spring has done little to threaten the status quo in Algeria, leaving outside commentators puzzled over what some are calling the "Algerian exception".

The arrest by French authorities of Mourad Dhina, one of the most vocal critics of Algeria's administration, underscores just how little has changed in the North African country, activists told Al Jazeera.

While neighbouring countries have experienced dramatic change, the Algerian government continues to stifle political dissent. The "Dhina Affair" also exposes the French government's ardent support for their Algerian allies.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/03/2012317213016144690.html

I'm not saying this is associated with this week's events.

btw - I'd have thought the chances of anyone of French Algerian origin not being Muslim were pretty much nil.

[JDPriestly]

6. Lots of people, at people in Europe and the US, who have Muslim parents are not Muslim.

Same as any religion.

[dipsydoodle]

4. Minister: French killing spree suspect may be dead

TOULOUSE, France (AP) -- The suspect in an radical Islam-linked killing spree in southern France has stopped communicating with authorities and may have committed suicide, the interior minister said Thursday, as a standoff between the gunman and hundreds of police entered a second day.

Claude Gueant said suspect Mohamed Merah, holed up in an apartment in the southern city of Toulouse, has not contacted negotiators since Wednesday night.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_FRANCE_TERROR_SUSPECT?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-03-22-05-42-31 Mar 22, 5:42 AM EDT