Schools evacuated near Hebdo suspects' siege

Authorities started evacuating schools in the northern French town where the two suspects in the Charlie Hebdo killings are under police siege and are believed to have at least one person hostage.

Authorities started evacuating schools in the northern French town where the two suspects in the Charlie Hebdo killings are under police siege and are believed to have at least one person hostage.

About 1,000 children are schooled in the town of Dammartin-en-Goele, located less than 50 km (30 miles) northeast of Paris.

"They have already evacuated the closest school to the hostage-taking and now will evacuate the others," Deputy Mayor Thierry Chevalier told Reuters, saying nursery and elementary schools would be the first priority.

The children were being taken to a gymnasium in the centre of town to be picked up by their parents, he said.

Police have surrounded a printing shop where the suspects in the killings at the satirical magazine have taken refuge. A police source said they had taken at least one hostage.