Charlie Hebdo shootings: More than 3 million people, led by world leaders, join historic marches across France

Updated

Up to 1.6 million people, led by dozens of world leaders, have taken to the streets of Paris in a mass show of solidarity following the terrorist attacks of recent days.

The interior ministry said the size of the march was "unprecedented", with between 1.2 million and 1.6 million people gathering in Paris, while up to 2.5 million others joined marches across the rest of the country and Europe.

Some commentators said the last street presence in the capital on this scale was at the liberation of Paris from Nazi Germany in 1944.

President Francois Hollande and leaders from Germany, Italy, Israel, Turkey, Britain and the Palestinian territories among others moved off from the central Place de la République ahead of a sea of French and other flags.

Giant letters attached to a statue in the square spelt out the word "Pourquoi?" (why?) and small groups sang the La Marseillaise national anthem.

"Paris is today the capital of the world," Mr Hollande said. "Our entire country will rise up and show its best side."

Speaking at the march, British prime minister David Cameron said extremist violence would remain a threat for many years to come.

"We in Britain face a very similar threat, a threat of fanatical extremism," he said.

"It's a threat that has been with us for many years."

Seventeen people, including journalists and police officers, lost their lives in three days of violence that began with a shooting attack on the Charlie Hebdo magazine office and ended with a hostage-taking at a kosher supermarket on Friday. The three gunmen were also killed.

The silent march through the centre of Paris, in honour of the victims of the worst terror attacks in the city for 50 years, was arranged shortly after the attacks.

Barbara Miller reports from the march in Paris



When you see the pictures from the Paris rally it looks like one big party, but the mood on the street was in many parts sombre, reflective.



People walked slowly and purposefully from the Place de la Republique, which has become a place to gather and mourn in the wake of these attacks, to the Place de La Nation several kilometres away.



Many of them held "Je suis Charlie" (I am Charlie) signs in the air or pens and pencils, tributes to the journalists of Charlie Hebdo murdered last week and symbols that the terrorists would not kill free speech.



When a large contingent of police officers walked past a crowd who had gathered at a blockade in a side street hoping to join the march, they got a huge cheer.



Three police officers have died in these attacks. "Je suis flic" (I am cop) is one of several variations you can find on the "Je suis Charlie" slogan.



There is a huge Christmas tree still standing smack bang in the middle of the roundabout at the Voltaire metro, about halfway along the route. It is a strange sight. Christmas and the festive season seem very far away now.



One of the most poignant moments was when some of the surviving staff of Charlie Hebdo walked past. They wore white headbands with "Charlie" written on them, and they held on to one another tightly.



They came ahead of the visiting world leaders and were the first marchers to pass the media contingent I was standing with at the time.



Recognising them, the local journalists broke out into applause.



Some of the marchers clenched their fists and punched them in the air.



These people will publish their beloved weekly magazine again on Wednesday. It's an act of defiance you can't help but think their dead colleagues would approve of immensely. When you see the pictures from the Paris rally it looks like one big party, but the mood on the street was in many parts sombre, reflective.People walked slowly and purposefully from the Place de la Republique, which has become a place to gather and mourn in the wake of these attacks, to the Place de La Nation several kilometres away.Many of them held "Je suis Charlie" (I am Charlie) signs in the air or pens and pencils, tributes to the journalists of Charlie Hebdo murdered last week and symbols that the terrorists would not kill free speech.When a large contingent of police officers walked past a crowd who had gathered at a blockade in a side street hoping to join the march, they got a huge cheer.Three police officers have died in these attacks. "Je suis flic" (I am cop) is one of several variations you can find on the "Je suis Charlie" slogan.There is a huge Christmas tree still standing smack bang in the middle of the roundabout at the Voltaire metro, about halfway along the route. It is a strange sight. Christmas and the festive season seem very far away now.One of the most poignant moments was when some of the surviving staff of Charlie Hebdo walked past. They wore white headbands with "Charlie" written on them, and they held on to one another tightly.They came ahead of the visiting world leaders and were the first marchers to pass the media contingent I was standing with at the time.Recognising them, the local journalists broke out into applause.Some of the marchers clenched their fists and punched them in the air.These people will publish their beloved weekly magazine again on Wednesday. It's an act of defiance you can't help but think their dead colleagues would approve of immensely.

Senate president Stephen Parry represented Australia at the march.

He said it was exceptionally important to have so many world leaders come together for the event to send the message that good would triumph over evil.

"This is not just a matter that's quarantined to one part of the world as we know in Australia in Martin Place in recent weeks," he said.

"This is something that affects us worldwide, and to have as many world leaders that could be here demonstrate that solidarity marching in defiance ... it was very good."

Organisers of the march said the turnout surpassed the number of one million that had been predicted.

"Fantastic France! I am told there could be as many as 1.3 million to 1.5 million of us in Paris," tweeted Francois Lamy, the lawmaker charged by the ruling Socialist Party with organising the rally.

Under a blue winter sky and bright sunshine, a few hundred people gathered early to look at wreaths for the victims on Place de la République.

"I am here to show the terrorists they have not won — on the contrary, it is bringing people together of all religions," said Zakaria Moumni, a 34-year-old Franco-Moroccan draped in the French flag.

Many people carried signs saying "Je suis Charlie" (I am Charlie) in reference to the magazine where 12 people, including its top cartoonists, were killed on Wednesday.

"It's important to defend our freedom and the freedom of speech, so it's very important and exciting to see all these people are coming out to defend our freedom," one marcher said.

"It will probably fade away a little bit, but I think it's a really pivotal moment and people will really continue to struggle for freedom and the freedom of speech."

Unprecedented security presence to monitor Paris streets

About 2,200 police and soldiers patrolled Paris streets to protect marchers from would-be attackers, with police snipers on rooftops and plain-clothes detectives mingling with the crowd.

Hours before the Paris rally, German police said they were investigating whether an arson attack on the offices of a German newspaper was linked to its earlier publication of Charlie Hebdo cartoons featuring the Prophet Mohammed.

Jake Sturmer reports from the streets of Paris

Throughout the day, police and military officials carrying assault rifles patrolled the streets, train stations and shopping centres around Paris with their fingers just centimetres from the trigger.



Occasionally, a motorcade carrying a world leader due to attend the march would race through the streets.



In the hours before the march, the streets around the Place de la République and Place de la Bastille began to fill.



Police cordoned off several streets, creating a significant backlog of people in the surrounding areas.



Inside a local cafe, the owners served coffees and poured beers for hours as people watched TV coverage showing world leaders beginning the march.



The crowds inside and outside of the cafe alternated between spontaneous renditions of the national anthem and applause and chanting.



Once world leaders had paid their respects, police removed the barricades, effectively opening the floodgates, with thousands of people pouring through the streets to join the march. Throughout the day, police and military officials carrying assault rifles patrolled the streets, train stations and shopping centres around Paris with their fingers just centimetres from the trigger.Occasionally, a motorcade carrying a world leader due to attend the march would race through the streets.In the hours before the march, the streets around the Place de la République and Place de la Bastille began to fill.Police cordoned off several streets, creating a significant backlog of people in the surrounding areas.Inside a local cafe, the owners served coffees and poured beers for hours as people watched TV coverage showing world leaders beginning the march.The crowds inside and outside of the cafe alternated between spontaneous renditions of the national anthem and applause and chanting.Once world leaders had paid their respects, police removed the barricades, effectively opening the floodgates, with thousands of people pouring through the streets to join the march.

French leaders have warned the threat may not yet be over and appealed for calm and for unity.

Mr Hollande and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Grand Synagogue of Paris after the march. Four Jews were killed in the attack on the supermarket.

Following the supermarket attack, in which the gunman Amedy Coulibaly killed four people, the synagogue closed its doors for the first time in decades.

Mr Netanyahu said he appreciated the "very firm position" taken by French leaders against "the new anti-Semitism and terrorism" in France.

"Israel is today at Europe's side, but I would like Europe to be on Israel's side too," he said.

"Those who killed and massacred Jews in a synagogue recently in Israel and those who killed Jews and journalists in Paris are part of the same global terror movement.

"We must condemn them in the same way, we must fight them in the same way."

Right-wing National Front leader Marine Le Pen, who is expected to receive a boost in the polls due to the attacks, said her party shunned the Paris demonstration and instead took part in regional marches.

She accused the government of trying to take advantage of the event to win greater support.

Thousands of people also gathered in Brussels, Berlin, Madrid and Vienna, while in London landmarks such as Tower Bridge and Trafalgar Square were illuminated with the red white and blue colours of the French flag.

More than 20,000 people marched in Canada's French-speaking city of Montreal, and rallies also took place in Cairo and Tokyo.

AFP/Reuters

Topics: unrest-conflict-and-war, terrorism, france, turkey, syrian-arab-republic, yemen

First posted