Earlier this evening, it was reported that a number of people had been taken hostage in the French town of Roubaix.
According to reports, a bank manager and his family were held hostage by a number of armed gunmen but Reuters have since confirmed that they have been released and are now safe.
A number of people were reported to have suffered gunshot wounds but there are no further details as of yet.
UPDATE: Hostages in northern France are now safe: French officials
— Reuters Top News (@Reuters) November 24, 2015
Hostages all out say local media #Roubaix — fidelma cook (@fidelmacook) November 24, 2015
Initially it was not known if the situation was linked to the Paris terror attacks which took place on November 13th.
French media outlets have since reported that the situation was believed to be a robbery and not linked to a further terror attack.
Speaking to CTV News Channel, journalist Lisa Louis said police have indicated that it was “90 per cent likely” that this was not a terror attack.
Another police source said “this was apparently not a terrorist attack, this was a robbery”.
