Minute's silence observed for Paris shooting victims

A minute's silence has been observed across France and around the world in solidarity with those affected by the Charlie Hebdo massacre.

Bells rang out, Paris public transport stood still and children sat silent as France mourned 12 people killed in an attack on a newspaper office that has rattled the nation.

Hundreds of people hold hands and pause for a minutes silence in central Paris for the victims of the massacre pic.twitter.com/ulZLhcjwda

— Peter Stefanovic (@peterstefanovic) January 8, 2015

French president Francois Hollande ordered flags at half-mast and a moment of silence to honour the victims of the attack on Charlie Hebdo, which had caricatured the Prophet Mohammed. Witnesses said the attackers claimed allegiance to al Qaida.

Onlookers wept while listening to bells peal at Paris’s Notre Dame Cathedral.

People gather for a minute's silence to remember the victims of the #CharlieHebdo attack http://t.co/Fv0ZHWLPQX pic.twitter.com/ElS4WMYyV6

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 8, 2015

The rector of the Paris Mosque called on Muslims to observe the moment of silence and honour victims of this “exceptional violence”.

Mr Hollande called on the French to unite against terrorism and intolerance.

#JeSuisCharlie moving minute of silence at #AFP headquarters for the victims of Charlie Hebdo pic.twitter.com/JHz0JQGoru

— Francis Kohn (@Rimlaire) January 8, 2015

Newspapers around the world have strongly condemned the attack at the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine.

#JeSuisCharlie Hong Kong, Washington, Paris: l'hommages des équipes #AFP pic.twitter.com/eyJKt4DMgV

— Grégoire Lemarchand (@greglemarchand) January 8, 2015

Many printed cartoons in tribute to the controversial publication and the phrase “Je Suis Charlie” – meaning “I am Charlie” – was widely used to express solidarity.

Midi a Paris: le metro s'est figé. #JeSuisCharlie pic.twitter.com/8rvXZUvdPy

— anne chaon (@achaon) January 8, 2015

The French press was in mourning, with Le Figaro changing its masthead from blue to black and carrying the headline: “Freedom assassinated.”

Vine: Bells chime to mark moment of silence at Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral - imeldaflattery http://t.co/vWZSo2WcSU

— gay nation (@gaygaynation1) January 8, 2015

Liberation ran with a blacked-out front cover and the words “We are all Charlie”, while sports daily L’Equipe’s headline read: “Liberty 0 – Barbarity 12.”

L’Humanite published an editorial entitled War which described how the victims “only had their pens in defence”.

It read: “In these tragic hours, in a context where tensions continue to rise, the one and indivisible Republic, tolerant, secular and social, must more than ever be assertive. It must resist and cope against these cowards and barbarians.”

RT @s_jourdain: Faith leaders minute's silence at Paris central mosque pic.twitter.com/11yoLcSGNL

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) January 8, 2015

The front page of the UK’s Independent newspaper was simply a cartoon of a blood-stained hand rising from an issue of Charlie Hebdo giving the middle finger.

Its editorial described the victims as martyrs and added: “It falls on all organs of the press – in the Arab world as much as in the West – to treat them as such; to honour the stance they took as the most daring of all publishers in Europe.”

The Sun declared “Non!” against “evil in the name of Islam”.

Its editorial said: “The Islamist barbarians sought to crush freedom of speech yesterday. Last night’s moving protests in Paris and London showed it will never happen.”

German tabloid Bild said: “The only thing we can do is to live fearlessly. Our colleagues in Paris have paid the ultimate price for freedom. We bow down before them.”

Bergens Tidende in Norway printed a cartoon featuring pencils among bullets, while Spain’s Ara showed a crossed out speech bubble.

Belgium’s The Future featured a scribbled out cartoon and Algerian French-language tabloid El Watan had a drawing of a wreath on its front page.

An editorial in the New York Times said: “There are some who will say that Charlie Hebdo tempted the ire of Islamists one too many times, as if coldblooded murder is the price to pay for putting out a magazine.

“The massacre was motivated by hate. It is absurd to suggest that the way to avoid terrorist attacks is to let the terrorists dictate standards in a democracy.”

Pakistani English language newspaper Dawn carried an editorial which made reference to last month’s attack on Peshawar school.

It said: “The massacres in Peshawar and Paris, and the daily bombings in Yemen, Syria, and Iraq must provide the impetus for a tolerant and forgiving Islam to emerge in Muslim societies, where the majority needs to shun its justifications or silence, and loudly refuse to tolerate killing in the name of Islam.”

The Sydney Morning Herald wrote: “As the thousands of demonstrators who gathered at the Place de la Republique on Wednesday night chanted: ’Je suis Charlie’ – I am Charlie.

“We are Charlie.”