A gunman was holding several people hostage in a newsagent store in the Blagnac suburb of Toulouse in southwestern France on Tuesday, in what a police source said appeared to be a botched armed robbery.
The gunman fired at least one shot over the heads of elite RAID officers and had demanded a negotiator, the source said, adding that the incident did not appear to be terrorism-motivated.
Police believe five individuals are being held by the assailant, the source said.
Police told neighbors to stay indoors and set up a 300 meter security perimeter around the store.