French Police in Talks With Hostage-Takers East of Paris: Reports

The anti-terrorist unit of French police special forces has begun hostage negotiations with the suspected attackers of the Charlie Hebdo magazine office in Paris, in the area of Seine-et-Marne, northeast of the French capital, Le Figaro reported Friday.

PARIS, January 9 (Sputnik) – Earlier in the day, two men armed with automatic weapons stole a car in Oise, northern France. Later, a gunfight with the police erupted on a highway in the Seine-et-Marne area. The gunmen have taken at least one hostage in the town of Dammartin-en-Goele, some 26 miles from Paris.

According to reports from the scene, two gunmen and a hostage are barricaded inside a printing company office in Dammartin-en-Goele's industrial zone.

Police have confirmed that the suspects are brothers Said and Cherif Kouachi, French nationals of Algerian origin, one of whom has served a prison term for extremist activities.

The two are suspected of carrying out the attack on the offices of the Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly in Paris on Wednesday, which claimed the lives of 12 people and injured another 11.

Prior to the attack, the magazine had repeatedly received threats from Islamic extremists for publishing cartoons lampooning prominent figures, among them the Prophet Muhammad. The former Paris offices of the magazine were firebombed in 2011.