French forces kill newspaper attack suspects

Five dead, including gunman, in Paris supermarket hostage drama. Photo: AFP

Two brothers suspected of attacking the offices of French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo were killed when police stormed their hideout on Friday while their hostage was freed, a police official said.

#UPDATE Five dead in Paris supermarket hostage siege, says security source http://t.co/VeZabLVWqq

— Agence France-Presse (@AFP) January 9, 2015

Four critically wounded in Paris supermarket hostage drama. Photo: Thomas Samson #AFP #Vincennes pic.twitter.com/odIjFetRZd

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— AFP Photo Department (@AFPphoto) January 9, 2015

#CharlieHebdo update: French police killed the two suspects in the Charlie Hebdo attack http://t.co/P4EpdyUkQZ pic.twitter.com/Vry9DjlUaK

— NYT Graphics (@nytgraphics) January 9, 2015

Police launch assault where #CharlieHebdo suspects holed up. Photo Joel Saget #AFP pic.twitter.com/KTPZIFhUiA

— AFP Photo Department (@AFPphoto) January 9, 2015

Police launch assault where #CharlieHebdo suspects holed up. Photo by Joel Saget #AFP pic.twitter.com/uF2y11KwL9

— AFP Photo Department (@AFPphoto) January 9, 2015

However, a police source said at least four other hostages had been killed at a separate siege at a kosher supermarket in eastern Paris.

Several hostages freed at Jewish supermarket in Paris. Photo: AFP/ Thomas Samson

The two brothers died when security forces moved in on a print works in the small town of Dammartin-en-Goele, northeast of Paris, where the chief suspects in Wednesday's attack had been holed up with their hostage.

A police source said the hostage-taker at the Jewish supermarket, who is believed to have had links to the same Islamist group as the brothers, had also been killed.

The print works at Dammartin-en-Goele, set in marsh and woodland, had been under siege since the gunmen abandoned a high-speed car chase and took refuge there early on Friday.

Charlie Hebdo had long courted controversy with satirical attacks on Islam as well as other religions and political leaders. A witness said one of the gunmen in Wednesday's attack was heard to shout: "We have killed Charlie Hebdo! We have avenged the Prophet!"

Charlie Hebdo attack: Helicopters hunt for suspects in woods of France. http://t.co/nWlE0YPr4O pic.twitter.com/LstbtC4t18

— CNN (@CNN) January 9, 2015

U.S. ties one of the Kouachi brothers, who are wanted in #CharlieHebdo attack, to al Qaeda. http://t.co/ZQASheA8Gv pic.twitter.com/jwX9ZGixDW

— Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 9, 2015

Reaction from some members of High Wycombe's Muslim community to #CharlieHebdo attack, with @sima_kotecha: http://t.co/9eVW7UvUgB #r4today

— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) January 9, 2015

#ParisShooting suspects are believed to be hiding in a forest the size of Paris. Latest: http://t.co/z4YCi7NbPS pic.twitter.com/pDkbYNgige

— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) January 9, 2015

The gunmen killed 12 people in the attack on the Charlie Hebdo weekly, which raised questions about surveillance of radicals, far-right politics, religion and censorship in a land struggling to integrate part of its five-million Muslim population, the EU's largest.

Security sources said the French-born brothers of Algerian origin had been under surveillance and had been placed on European and US "no-fly" lists.

Roads into the town have been sealed off by police. Photo: AFP

A woman holds a sign reading 'Yo soy Charlie' (I am Charlie) in support of the victims of the terrorist attack at the French magazine Charlie Hebdo, on January 8, 2015 in front of the Duarte park in Santo Domingo City. Photo: AFP