France attack: French officer who swapped himself for hostage dies; updates

France attack: In Trebes, the man 'entered the Super U supermarket at around 11.15 am and shots were heard

France terror attack:A French police officer who swapped himself for a hostage in a supermarket siege in Trebes has died, a minister said on Saturday.

Announcing the Lt-Col Arnaud Beltrame's death on Twitter, Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said: "He died for his country. France will never forget his heroism, his bravery, his sacrifice," reports the BBC. The gendarme helped bring an end to a gunman's shooting spree on Friday that killed three in southern France.

The radical Islamist gunman, Redouane Lakdim, 25, was shot dead. Beltrame had been hailed as a hero by French President Emmanuel Macron. On Friday night, Macron had revealed that Beltrame had suffered serious injuries and was fighting for his life in hospital.

Sixteen people were injured, two seriously, in what the President called an act of "Islamist terrorism", the BBC reported. Lakdim was said to have demanded the release of Salah Abdeslam, the most important surviving suspect in the November 13, 2015, attacks in Paris, which killed 130 people.

One person - believed to be Lakdim's partner - has been arrested in connection with the shootings.

Top 10 developments on France hostage taking

1) French hero officer who swapped himself for hostage dies

A French police officer who offered himself up to an extremist gunman in exchange for a hostage has died of his injuries, the interior minister said today.

Col Arnaud Beltrame was among the first officers to respond to the attack on the supermarket in the south of France yesterday. His death, announced by French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb, raises the toll to four. The gunman was also killed, and 15 people were injured in the attack.

The gunman first hijacked a car and opened fire on police, then took hostages inside a supermarket. Baltrame volunteered to take the place of a female hostage and surreptitiously left on his cellphone so police outside could hear what was happening inside the store.

2) Partner of attacker detained

A woman who was living with the attacker who killed four people at a supermarket in southern France's Trebes has been detained, a prosecutor said on Friday.

Francois Molins, the prosecutor said gunman Radouane Lakdim had claimed to be a soldier for the terror group Islamic State (IS) while storming the Super U market in the town before he was killed by police.

3) Emmanuel Macron says all evidence suggests hostage-taking, shootings were a terrorist attack

French President Emmanuel Macron said all evidence suggested the hostage-taking and shootings were a terrorist attack. Speaking in Brussels, where he is attending an EU summit, Macron offered his "full support" to everyone involved in the situation.

The president said he won't give details on the number of victims "at this stage." Macron said he would return to Paris in the coming hours and will follow closely the situation.

4) Police probes suspicious vehicle at London shopping centre

Special officeScotlandctland Yard were checking a suspicious vehicle in the parking lot of a shopping centre in west London today, the British Police said.

"Police are currently dealing with a suspicious vehicle in the car park at Westfield London Shopping Centre in White City. Specialist officers are on scene, and the vehicle is being assessed," the Met Police said in a statement.

It further said that roads have been closed and the area had been cordoned off to keep people away while the vehicle was being assessed.

5) Gunman shouts 'Vengeance for Syria!' and 'Allahu Akbar!'

According to NYT report the gunman shouted, 'Vengeance for Syria!' and 'Allahu Akbar!' as he opened fire in a supermarket in southwest France. 

At least one person was feared dead after a gunman claiming allegiance to the Islamic State group fired shots in a hostage-taking at a supermarket in southwest France today, police said.

"We unfortunately presume one person has been killed, but we cannot bring a doctor on site to check," Jean-Valery Lettermann, the regional police chief, said of the attack at a Super U store in Trebes, near Carcassonne.

The gunman claimed allegiance to the Islamic State group

6) Gunman takes hostages at French supermarket

A gunman has taken hostages in a supermarket in south-west France, while one policeman was shot in a separate incident near the town.

It is not yet clear if the two incidents have been undertaken by the same gunman.

7) What we know so far about hostage situation in Trèbes, France:

— Police surrounding Super U shop, gunman inside

— Shots fired at policemen earlier, wounding one

— Gunman "claims to be in Islamic State group

8) French PM says incident in southern France appears to be 'terrorist act' 

French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe says shooting, hostage-taking 'seems to be a terrorist act.

9)  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. France also suffered major attacks in Paris in November 2015 when IS jihadists killed 130 people at bars, restaurants, the Bataclan concert venue and the national stadium.

10) In July 2016, in another attack claimed by IS, a man drove a truck through revellers celebrating Bastille Day, killing 84 people.

A state of emergency put in place just after the Paris attacks was finally lifted in October last year, but soldiers continue to patrol major tourist sites and transport hubs under an anti-terror mission.