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Charlie Hebdo aftermath: Mosques attacked in France

Last updated on: January 08, 2015 16:52 IST

Image: A police investigator inspects the scene after an attack at a kebab restaurant near el Houda mosque in Villefrance-Sur-Saone near Lyon. Photograph: Emmanuel Foudrot/Reuters 

Mosques in two French towns were attacked a day after the firing at French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo that left 12 dead. However, there have been no casualties. 

Three blank grenades were thrown at a mosque shortly after midnight in the city of Le Mans, west of Paris, and shots were fired in the direction of a Muslim prayer hall shortly after evening prayers in the Port-la-Nouvelle district near Narbonne in southern France.

An explosion at a kebab shop near a mosque in the eastern French town of Villefranche-sur-Saone on Thursday morning also left no casualties.

It is yet to be confirmed if the latest attack has any links to the Charlie Hebdo massacre.

According to ABC News, seven people have been detained for the killings at Charlie Hebdo offices.

According to the BBC, eight journalists and two policemen were among the dead. Police issued photos of two suspects, describing them as "armed and dangerous".

AFP reports that the two armed suspects in Charlie Hebdo attacks have been 'located' in northern France after a massive manhunt. They have been identified as brothers Said Kouachi, 34, and Cherif Kouachi, 32.  

Earlier, Hamyd Mourad, 18, the youngest suspect turned himself in, according to Deadline.com and as reported by French daily Le Monde.

President Francois Hollande condemned the attack, calling it a "cowardly murder" and declared a day of national mourning on Thursday.

The French publication had reportedly tweeted a cartoon mocking IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi just an hour before the gunmen barged into their office and wrecked havoc. The attacks have triggered outrage across the world.

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