French Police hunt mall attackers

French police yesterday were hunting armed robbers who escaped after holding up a store in a shopping mall near Paris, prompting special forces to intervene and seal off the area.

The three men -- one of whom was thought to be an employee of the shop -- burst into the Primark store in Villeneuve-la-Garenne early yesterday, said a police source who wished to remain anonymous.

While security forces initially thought the gunmen were still inside the mall, they realised after searching the premises that the men had escaped.

The area around the Qwartz mall was shut down, all traffic stopped and other stores in the vicinity closed up as special forces rushed to the scene.

The mall was promptly evacuated but according to police, 18 employees had remained inside.