​French police were on a massive manhunt for armed robbers on July 13 after rescuing 18 hostages.

Special forces sealed off the area where the robbery occurred - Photo: Reuters

Early on the morning of July 13 (local time), three armed thieves broke into a Primark store in Villeneuve-la-Garenne (north of Paris) and took hostages. According to AFP, sources indicate that one of the three robbers may have been an employee of the store.

The task force sealed off the area where the robbery occurred and rescued 18 hostages. There were no casualties in the rescue operation.

To date, police believe the robbery on July 13th was simply an armed robbery. Authorities say it is likely the thieves did not manage to steal any money while fleeing.

“I saw two thieves, they were wearing black clothes and hoods. They were calm, they didn’t seem to be in a hurry at all,” said witness Bruno Jahin, 20. “The tallest one was carrying a gun. I think it was a handgun.”

“I heard them say many times, ‘This is a robbery, get out of here.’ I tried hard to find the elevator. Clearly, they just wanted to steal the money. These kinds of shops do very well,” Bruno said.

Although no casualties occurred, the robbery caused considerable alarm among the people of Paris.

In late June 2015, the Islamic State (IS) group attacked a gas plant and beheaded a man near the city of Lyon.

In January 2015, France was shaken by a terrorist attack at the Charlie Hebdo newspaper office in Paris, which killed 12 people and injured 11 others.

(According to TTO)