Military drill turns into bloodbath

CARCASSONNE – By the time the frantic call of “cease fire” rang out, 17 people lay shot and wounded as a fun family day to watch a military drill turned into a bloodbath on Sunday.

“Suddenly, people were falling, we thought it was part of the exercise, and then we saw blood,” said one of the hundreds of visitors who watched as a French soldier fired live rounds instead of blanks at visitors attending a hostage-taking demonstration. Five children were among those injured at the drill near Carcassonne in southwestern France.”We were watching a hostage-taking exercise and it happened when there was only about five minutes to go.There were seven or eight soldiers with guns, with one of them in the middle of the public pretending to be a terrorist,” saida witness, who attended the event with his family.”We saw a child of about three years, really messed up, that really struck us.There were loads of children, because it was a party for children above all,” he said.”Everybody ran for the exits.It (the evacuation) was very well organised, the soldiers handled it very well,” he said.A senior army officer insisted that the incident was almost certainly the result of an “unintentional” error.Fifteen civilians were injured along with two soldiers.Military and civilian investigators have opened probes into the events at the Third Marine Parachute Regiment barracks.Defence Minister Herve Morin said that the shooter had first fired a magazine of blanks and then loaded a fresh magazine but this time with live bullets.He said an experienced soldier would not confuse blanks and real bullets, noting that the two munitions are packed into different-coloured magazines.The soldier, a sergeant described as experienced with no history of behavioural or psychological problems, was detained following the incident.Nampa-AFPFive children were among those injured at the drill near Carcassonne in southwestern France.”We were watching a hostage-taking exercise and it happened when there was only about five minutes to go.There were seven or eight soldiers with guns, with one of them in the middle of the public pretending to be a terrorist,” saida witness, who attended the event with his family.”We saw a child of about three years, really messed up, that really struck us.There were loads of children, because it was a party for children above all,” he said.”Everybody ran for the exits.It (the evacuation) was very well organised, the soldiers handled it very well,” he said.A senior army officer insisted that the incident was almost certainly the result of an “unintentional” error.Fifteen civilians were injured along with two soldiers.Military and civilian investigators have opened probes into the events at the Third Marine Parachute Regiment barracks.Defence Minister Herve Morin said that the shooter had first fired a magazine of blanks and then loaded a fresh magazine but this time with live bullets.He said an experienced soldier would not confuse blanks and real bullets, noting that the two munitions are packed into different-coloured magazines.The soldier, a sergeant described as experienced with no history of behavioural or psychological problems, was detained following the incident.Nampa-AFP