Paris prosecutor Francois Molins gave a minute-by-minute account of how the attacks in Paris unfolded yesterday.
:: 9.20pm – One victim was killed when the first explosion went off in Saint Denis near the Stade de France during a football match between France and Germany. The body of a terrorist was found at the scene wearing a suicide belt filled with shrapnel.
:: 9.25pm – 15 people were killed and 10 injured at Le Carillon bar and Le Petit Cambodge restaurant in Rue Alibert in the city’s 10th district. Terrorists armed with kalashnikovs were seen pulling up in a black Seat car before opening fire.
:: 9.30pm – A second explosion went off outside the Stade de France. The body of another suicide bomber was discovered at the scene with a similar explosive belt.
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:: 9.32pm – Five people died and eight were injured in a shooting outside La Bonne Biere bar in the 11th district. The gunmen arrived in the same car and armed with similar weapons to the first shooting.
:: 9.36pm – 19 people were killed and nine injured at La Belle Equipe restaurant on Rue de Charonne in the 11th district. A black Seat car was spotted at the scene and the gunmen were again armed with kalashnikovs.
:: 9.40pm – One person was seriously injured when a suicide explosive, similar to those used in the other attacks, was detonated inside the Voltaire restaurant in Boulevard Voltaire, 11th district.
:: 9.40pm – 89 people were shot dead and “many” injured when three armed men took hostages and opened fire into the crowd during a rock concert at Le Bataclan. The attackers were heard mentioning Syria and Iraq during the massacre. They arrived at the venue in a black Polo car.
:: 9.53pm – Third explosion took place on Rue de la Coquerie, near the Stade de France. The body of a third suicide bomber wearing an explosive belt was found at the scene.
:: 12.20am – The three terrorists at Le Bataclan were killed. One was shot dead by French police, the other two blew themselves up.
100 minutes that stunned the world:
From the moment the first bomber blew himself up to the horrific slaughter at a concert hall, a full account of how the carnage of the Paris massacre unfolded
- Deadly football stadium suicide bomb attack was designed to cause a fan stampede and mass death
- Fans initially thought bad explosion of bomb was a firecracker and cheered as the players continued to play
- Bomber's plan failed as third suicide attacker detonated explosives at a nearby McDonald's, causing only damage
At 8.17pm GMT on Friday night, a thunderous bang rose above raucous singing in the Stade de France on the northern fringes of Paris.
Believing it signalled the start of a fireworks display, football fans watching France play Germany in a friendly match simply cheered.
In fact, it was a bomber detonating explosives outside the stadium – and it signalled the start of a night of horror, setting in motion a series of monstrous acts that would eclipse by far the Charlie Hebdo attacks in January and, by the end of the night, render Paris numb with shock.
Although it is scarcely possible to conceive, it emerged last night that the attack on the French national stadium could have been catastrophically worse. Mercifully, it appears the bombers' plan failed.
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Eight bombers carried out the devastating attacks, leaving 128 people dead and as many as 200 people injured in Paris
Supporters of both France and Germany are being held in the stadium until they can be safely evacuated
Police sources believe they were trying to trigger a panicked stampede by detonating a suicide vest inside the stadium and then bombing the fleeing fans – but were thwarted when one bomber failed to gain admittance to the arena.
At least one of them had a ticket to the game. He attempted to negotiate security 15 minutes after kick-off but was frisked by a security guard who, to his horror, realised he was wearing an explosives vest.
Attempting to back away from security, the attacker then blew himself up – killing a 63-year-old Portuguese man who lived and worked in Paris.
Three minutes later came another deafening boom from across the other side of the stadium. This time, it is thought the suicide bomber was a youth of just 15. But oblivious fans responded with more good-natured cheers – only later would many of them learn the deadly truth.
A third suicide attacker detonated explosives – possibly grenades –at a nearby McDonald's at 8.53pm, police said.
The game had kicked off at 8pm in front of 80,000 spectators, among them President Francois Hollande.
It had been a difficult week for the president, with problems with the economy and far-Right politicians stoking anti-immigrant sentiment, but he was eagerly looking forward to the match.
Fan footage shows how the players continued to play football despite the horrific blast
Fans can be heard screaming in terror and confusion following the loud explosion outside the ground
At a friendly match between France and Germany inside the 80,000 person stadium, his bodyguard told him that terrorists were on the loose in the French capital
President Hollande was thought to have been evacuated from the stadium shortly after the first suicide bomb exploded outside
France and Germany supporters wait until they can be escorted safely away from the stadium
Thousands of fans poured on to the pitch following the final whistle of the France vs Germany game
After the match between France and Germany ended, several fans invaded the pitch and decided to stay inside the safety of the stadium
France and Germany fans were brought onto the pitch at the Stade de France after a terror attack in Paris
France and Germany supporters gathered together on the pitch at the Stade de France on Friday night
Police monitor the crowds as people are slowly evacuated from the stadium on Friday night, afraid of the violence outside the stadium
A French couple look scared as they stand together inside the Stade de France after a terror attack
Soon after the first blast, Hollande was hastily evacuated and driven away to prepare his emotional address to the nation. The match was allowed to run its course.
But eight minutes after the first explosion at the Stade de France came the start of the carnage in the city centre.
Gunfire broke out in Rue Alibert, a vibrant area in the 10th arrondissement filled with hip bars and restaurants. At first, customers at Le Carillon bar – which had been hosting a 'happy hour' – thought a firecracker had gone off outside.
Within seconds, they realised a terrorist had opened fire with a semi-automatic weapon. Having arrived by car, the man then strode across the road and turned his gun on the popular Cambodian restaurant Le Petit Cambodge. As he opened fire, sending diners diving to the floor, he shouted: 'Allah Akbar' – God is great, in Arabic.
In all, he murdered 15 people. Several more were wounded, some critically.
British TV producer Charlotte Brehaut, who was eating at the restaurant with a friend, managed to escape after bullets flew past their heads. She said: 'I realised I was holding a woman's arm next to me and when I suddenly started to process what was happening and was asking around if people were okay, I realised she had been fatally wounded.
'She had been shot in the chest and there was blood all around her.'
A few streets away, 400 yards south of Le Petit Cambodge, Mark Colclough, 43, a British-Danish psychotherapist, was walking towards Rue de le Fontaine with a friend at about 8.20pm.
Ahead of them was the Café Bonne Biere, which stands opposite the Casa Nostra pizzeria.
Ten minutes later, at least five people, possibly many more, lay dead amid still-warm plates and coffee cups.
A victim's body lies covered on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire, close to the Bataclan theatre
Cafe horror: A woman wipes tears from her eyes as she and other survivors help comfort some of the wounded
People run after hearing what is believed to be explosions or gun shots near Place de la Republique square in Paris
A soldier stands by victims in the 10th district of Paris where an AK47 wielding fanatic gunned down 11 people at a Cambodian restaurant
Two police officials said at least 11 people were killed in the restaurant shootout in Paris
'When the first boom went off, I thought it was firecrackers but within seconds I knew something was wrong,' Mr Colclough said.
Then the gunman, left-handed and dressed 'head to toe' in black, loomed into view. He took aim at the Café Bonne Biere, as horrified Parisians ran for cover. 'I saw him shoot three people with about four shots and then he changed position and walked forward a step and then fired I think two rounds into a car,' said Mr Colclough.
'Then he strode into the [Bonne Biere] café and pointed his gun right, then swivelled the gun left and opened fire. At first I thought it was an execution, a hit.
'But then when he strode into the café, I knew it was an attack on civilians. When he walked into the café I knew we had to run.'
Next, the same gunman targeted the Casa Nostra pizzeria across the street. From here, he joined other gunman and moved a mile and a half south-east to the Roquette district, attacking venues seemingly at random.
At shortly before 8.40pm, TV cameraman Charlie Pitt, from Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, was walking past La Belle Equipe on Rue de Charonne, when he heard shots behind him. Turning, he saw two gunmen shower the café with 'around 100 bullets'. He was just 30 yards away and scrambled for cover. This time, the death toll was 19.
'My colleague and I started heading back towards the restaurant. It was mayhem. We wanted to help. We'd eaten at this café two days ago. The staff were so friendly.
'There were injured people and people who were obviously dead. There was a whole pile of bodies on the left-hand side at the front – I counted seven – and four bodies on the right hand side.
Half a mile away, at 8.43pm, a suicide bomber blew himself up outside the Comptoir Voltaire on the Boulevard Voltaire, killing himself and wounding more than a dozen.
French fire brigade members help an injured individual near the Bataclan concert hall following fatal shootings in Paris, France
Rescue workers help a terrified young woman after one of the horrific attacks in the city of Paris
French special forces evacuate people, including an injured man holding his head, as people gather near the Bataclan concert hall following fatal shootings
French riot police appear to hold a man down on the streets of Paris, following a series of deadly attacks in the French capital
At that point, it had been just 26 minutes since the carnage began at the Stade de France.
If it had all ended there it would still have been one of the worst terrorist attacks in modern French history. But there was to be an appalling denouement – the barbaric attack on the nearby Bataclan theatre, which is one of the city's most popular music venues.
The 150-year-old music hall was sold out for a concert by the Californian group Eagles Of Death Metal, who had been on stage for an hour when four young men burst into the auditorium – AK-47s blazing – at 8.49pm. Eighty-nine people would die there. The men ordered the 1,000-strong audience to lie on the floor. One shouted in French: 'What you are doing in Syria, you are going to pay for it now.' Another cried: 'This is for Syria.'
Then, aiming their weapons, they issued short bursts of fire, killing two or three people at a time.
Survivors would speak later of the unspeakable terror, of people crawling on top of each other, covering their heads, whispering prayers. For ten minutes, the gunmen slowly picked off their victims as they lay face-down, deliberately pausing for a minute every so often, raising the already appalling sense of dread.
'They shot, recharged their guns, and shot again,' said one man.
Some of the spectators managed to flee from back exits, but for minutes the gunmen shot unimpeded.
In footage that emerged later, dozens of people are seen stepping over injured or dead bodies to escape gunmen. Others hang desperately from first and second-floor windows as they try to evade death from the terrorists inside.
Outside, one man, who appears to have been shot in the leg, limps desperately as he tries to find cover.
And just yards down the street, two badly injured victims are seen being dragged away by their friends, leaving a trail of blood in the street.
Fleeing the massacre: A dramatic new video has emerged showing desperate Paris terror attack victims escaping from a theatre where jihadi gunmen slaughtered dozens of concert-goers, with some (above) dragging their bleeding friends along the ground to safety
The footage shows a woman hanging from the second floor window of the Bataclan theatre, while others run for their lives into the street
Chaos and panic descended onto the streets of Paris as security services desperately tried to regain control of the city
Firefighters do their best to help one severaly injured civilian shortly after the gunmen blew themselves inside the theatre
Police stand by and contemplate the horrific attack which left as many as 129 people dead and a further 200 people injured
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