Trebes, France: At least three people were killed after a gunman claiming allegiance to the Islamic State group opened fire and took hostages at a supermarket in southwest France on Friday.
A security source said the two were killed in the attack at a Super U store in the town of Trebes. Armed police were also responding to the earlier shooting of a policeman in Carcassonne, 15 minutes drive away, which took place at around 11 am. It was unclear if the two incidents were linked.
In Trebes, a picturesque medieval town of around 5,000 people, the man “entered the Super U supermarket at around 11.15 am and shots were heard,” a source said on condition of anonymity.
A witness reported he shouted “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) before going into the premises, the source added.
The gunman claimed allegiance to the IS, the local prosecutor’s office said, and the incident was being treated as a terror attack. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said it was a “serious” incident.
The shootings come with France still on high alert after a string of jihadist attacks since 2015, starting in January that year with the assault on satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo that left 12 people dead.
