Hooded gunmen with Kalashnikovs open fire in Marseille ahead of Prime Minister's visit
HOODED gunmen armed with Kalashnikovs opened fire in Marseille, which French Prime Minister Manuel Valls is due to visit today.
Gunfire was heard at around 10am in the Castellane area of the French port city.
A group of around 10 people fired rifles into the air, according to witnesses.
Around 40 officers are now understood to be stationed at a roundabout in the area.
The estate, which home to around 7,000 people, is now in lockdown and a creche has been evacuated.
The area is well-known for drug gangs and violence.
Reports in French newspaper Le Figaro suggested that the shooting may have been related to a gang war in the city.
Some reports have suggested that this may have been due to a feud over drug-dealing territory.
It has also been suggested that the gunmen may have been targeting Pierre-Marie Bourniquel, the local police chief who was due to meet Mr Valls later today.
A Marseille police source said: "Shots were fired at police vehicles. Roads in and out of the estate have now been blocked, and officers are dealing with the situation.
"There are no reports of casualties so far."
The PM had been set to praise the "excellent" results of a crime crackdown in the city.
French journalist Stefan De Vries told Sky News: "The area is sealed now and heavily armed squad teams are in the area.
"There is a very high murder rate but almost all the murders are gang-related. Very few victims are civilians."
Local politician Samia Ghali tweeted that the area was in a "state of siege".
He added that it was his "worst nightmare".
Mr Ghali told BFMTV that the incident revealed broader issues in crime-ridden areas such as La Castellane.
He said: "It's got everything - prostitution, drugs trafficking, violence. It's a dangerous cocktail and we saw evidence of that today."
A source insisted there were no plans to cancel Mr Valls' visit.
The country has been on high alert following terrorist attacks in the French capital last month.
Attacks on the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish supermarket left 17 dead.