Children taken hostage by armed teenager in French pre-school

BESANCON - A group of children were held hostage by a 17-year-old, armed with swords, at a nursery school in France, officials have said.

According to The Guardian, the teenager initially took 20 children hostage at the Charles Fourier pre-school in the city of Besancon at 9a.m., but released most of them about an hour later.

The teen’s motives are unclear.

“Around 14 children have come out and at the moment there are five or six still inside,” Besancon’s mayor, Jean-Louis Fousseret, said.

He also said that a special police force was sent in from Strasbourg to help local police handle the standoff.

The children being held are aged between four and five.

Their teacher and a classroom assistant are also being held. (ANI)