Hooded gunmen fire on French police in Marseilles

Peter Weber, The Week US's avatar
By
Published
French riot police are on high alert
(Image credit: Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images)

Elite French police units are being sent to a northern suburb of Marseilles after hooded gunmen fired Kalashnikov rifles at police, a police source tells Reuters. France is on high-alert for terrorism after the Charlie Hebdo killings and their aftermath, but Marseilles officials blame this incident on drug traffickers. "This battle against drug trafficking is a long-term battle," Deputy Mayor Caroline Pozmentier said on Monday. A school has been evacuated and a section of the town, La Castellane, has been cordoned off. Prime Minister Manuel Valls is visiting Marseilles on Monday.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Sign up
Peter Weber, The Week US
Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.