Hostage Killed At Church In Northern France

French media are reporting that a person was killed on July 26 during a hostage situation in a church in a town in France’s northern Normandy region.

The French Interior Ministry said that two hostage takers were “neutralized” in the attack.

Reports said the two had been shot dead by the police.

Their identity and their motives were not clear.

A police source said that one of the hostages had been killed with a blade in the attack, which took place in the Normandy town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray.

Another hostage was “between life and death”, the Interior Ministry said.

The hostages included a priest, two nuns, and a few worshipers, according to reports by French media.

French media reported the attackers cut the throat of the priest.

French President Francois Hollande and Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve were on their way to the site of the attack.

France’s antiterrorist prosecution unit said it had taken over the investigation into the attack .

The incident comes as France remains on high alert nearly two weeks after Tunisian Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel mowed down a crowd of people celebrating Bastille Day in the southern city of Nice, killing 84.

The attack, the third major strike on France in 18 months, was claimed by the extremist group Islamic State (IS).

Source: rferl.org