Girl, 11, from British family shot dead in France: Everything we know so far
The girl, named by French authorities as Solaine Thornton, was shot while playing in her garden.
An 11-year-old girl from a British family has been shot dead in France.
The girl, named by French authorities as Solaine Thornton, was shot while playing in her garden.
The incident happened in a village in Brittany on Saturday evening.
A suspect, a 71-year-old man, has been arrested.
Here is what we know so far about the incident:
What happened?
According to reports, an 11-year-old girl, named by a local mayor as Solaine Thornton, was shot dead in the garden of her home in the village of Saint-Herbot, north of the city of Quimper in Brittany, France.
She and her family were reportedly enjoying a barbecue at about 10pm on Saturday evening when the shooting happened.
Her father, Adrian, 52, was reportedly shot in the head and is in a critical condition in hospital. Her mother, Rachel, 49, was shot in the back and the head but her injuries are not thought to be life-threatening, said Quimper public prosecutor Carine Halley.
Solaine's eight-year-old sister, who was not injured, raised the alarm by running to a nearby property and is said to be in shock.
The two sisters were playing on a swing and their parents were tending the barbecue when a neighbour allegedly began firing at them with a shotgun through a hedge.
Ms Halley said the girl was dead and her father was seriously injured when police arrived at the scene.
The family had lived at their home in the village for about four or five years and the two girls were born in France, reports said.
French media said there had been a dispute between the British family and their neighbours over a plot of land.
Ms Halley told French media: “The motives for this tragedy are not yet known. It appears there had been a conflict between the two neighbours for several years over a piece of land adjoining the two properties."
Who is the suspect?
The suspect, who is a 71-year-old Dutch national, has been arrested, according to local prosecutors.
The Times reported that Ms Halley said he allegedly "emerged armed with a gun and fired several times towards the victims”.
He is reported to have then shut himself in his house with his wife, before later surrendering to police. He was subsequently arrested along with his wife.
What has been the reaction?
The Foreign Office said it is providing assistance to the girl's family.
A spokesperson said: “We are providing consular assistance to a British family following a shooting in France and are in contact with the local authorities.”
Marguerite Bleuzen, the mayor of the Plonévez-du-Faou commune, who revealed the family's names to the media, told the BBC: "We knew the family well. There is a village fête every year and they always came.
"It is incomprehensible to have shot a child. No one can understand how that could have happened."
A neighbour told French media the youngest girl raised the alarm by shouting, "My sister is dead, my sister is dead".
