France Falls Silent For Paris Terror Victims

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A minute's silence has been held across France to remember the victims of the gun attack at the office of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

At midday (1100 GMT), crowds of people stood silently in public squares, schools and outside official buildings.

After the silence. bells tolled at Paris' Notre Dame cathedral and in churches across the country.

It comes after vigils were held in cities across the globe to mourn the victims of the attack in Paris and show support for freedom of speech.

President Francois Hollande has ordered flags to fly at half-mast for three days.

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Gallery: Vigils Held For Charlie Hebdo Victims

Vigils have been held across the world in support of the victims of the Paris terror attack

People lit candles at the Place de la Republique in Paris

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Others held up pens and placards reading "I am Charlie"

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Police officers also gathered in the French eastern city of Strasbourg to pay their respects

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In London, around 2,000 people joined a silent vigil in Trafalgar Square

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More than 35,000 people gathered in the French capital on Wednesday, after gunmen stormed the offices of the magazine, killing 10 journalists and two police officers.

Thousands also turned out in the French cities of Lyon, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Marseille.

Many of those at the Place de la Republique in the French capital carried signs with the words "Je Suis Charlie", which means "I am Charlie" in English.

Others used slogans such as "press freedom has no price" and "Charb mort libre" (Charb died free), a reference to the magazine's editor Stephane Charbonnier, one of four cartoonists killed by the terrorists.

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Gallery: Magazine Victims Identified

Bernard Maris was a journalist and shareholder in Charlie Hebdo

Bernard Velhav was a contributer to the magazine. Pic: Georges Seguin

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Hundreds of people took to the streets of Berlin, London, New York, Brussels, Madrid, Rome and Vienna to express their horror at the killings.

About 500 people stood in silence in front of the French embassy in Berlin, with many holding candles and waving the European Union flag.

In Trafalgar Square, people held up their mobile phones showing the "Je Suis Charlie" message.

Some sang the Marseillaise, the French national anthem, while holding pens as a symbol of press freedom.

"I heard the news ... like everyone else and it hit me hard," said Frenchman Nabil Nadifi, 29, who lives in London.

"I didn't necessarily agree with everything Charlie Hebdo published, but that doesn't mean an act like this was justified."

In Spain, the French ambassador to Madrid, Jerome Bonnafont, joined a crowd of several hundred people outside the embassy shouting "Free speech, free speech".

"I came because in the face of barbarity, freedom of expression must prevail," said Natalia Prieto, a 27-year-old Spanish woman.

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Gallery: Gunmen Attack Paris Magazine Office

Armed gunmen face police officers near the offices of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris

An attack on the offices of the newspaper left twelve dead, including two police officers, according to sources close to the investigation

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Around 150 people, most of them French, also stood in silence outside the French embassy on the Piazza Farnese in the heart of Rome.

In Montreal, more than 1,000 people braved temperatures of minus 20C to express solidarity with France.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper expressed his anger and sadness over the "barbaric" attack.

"Canadians stand with France on this dark day," he said.

"Canada and its allies will not be intimidated and will continue to stand firmly together against terrorists who would threaten the peace, freedom and democracy our countries so dearly value."

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