TerrorismTerrorist attacks in Paris kill scores, hostages taken

Terrorists likely affiliated with ISIS have simultaneously attacked three targets across Paris three hours ago. French authorities say that so far there are sixty confirmed dead.

The main developments so far:

• One of the targets, the Bataclan concert hall, was attacked while the American rock group Eagle was performing on stage. The police say that there are about 100 people being held hostage inside the concert hall.
• French prime minister Francois Hollande was evacuated at half time from the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, where the French and German national soccer teams were playing a friendly match. The game was stopped after a powerful car bomb, driven by a suicide bomber, exploded outside the stadium.
• The French cabinet is meeting in an emergency session.
• Hollande announced that France has closed its borders indefinitely, which means, among other things, that no refugees now arriving in Europe would be allowed into France for the time being.
• Hollande, in an address to the nation, has also declared a state of emergency across France, which gives law enforcement and the military additional powers to stop and detain citizens, search buildings, impose curfew on neighborhoods, stop traffic in some areas, and more.
• The Paris police and city hall have instructed residents to stay home unless there is an emergency requiring them to go somewhere. The police said via Twitter that people should stay inside “unless there’s an absolute necessity.”
• President Barack Obama, in a short statement said that “This is an attack not just on Paris, not just on the people on France, but an attack on all humanity and the universal values we share.” He called the attacks an “outrageous attempt to terrorize innocent civilians.”
• French and military special forces have been taking positions around the concert hall, apparently in preparations for storming the building.