Police say a man claiming ties to al Qaeda has taken four hostages in a bank in the southwestern French city of Toulouse, including the bank manager.
The man took several hostages in a branch of French bank CIC on Wednesday and fired a shot after an attempted armed robbery apparently went wrong.
An anti-terrorist police unit was on its way to the scene and the area was sealed off.
In March, a young al Qaeda-inspired gunman who travelled by scooter shot dead three soldiers, a rabbi and three Jewish children in Toulouse.
