"Deranged" armed man holed up in hotel in French town

Paris, July 19: An armed individual was holed up in a hotel in the town of Bollene in southern France on Tuesday (July 19) afternoon, the local police perfecture said, reported Reuters.

"A deranged man is holed up in the Formule 1 hotel," the police spokesperson told Reuters, describing a cheap motel chain.

The man's motives were not immediately known, however, and the police were at the scene, about 130 kilometres north of Marseille, the spokesperson added.

The hotel near the A7 motorway was evacuated as a result and the man was thought to be carrying a knife and might also have an explosive device, a local officer said, according to Reuters.

"The man is thought to have had a row with the manager," the report quoted the officer as saying. "We are waiting for negotiators," he said.

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