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US Promises Help to Bring Charlie Hebdo Attackers to Justice


President Barack Obama, center, meets with, from left, Secretary of State John Kerry and Vice President Joe Biden and National Security Adviser Susan Rice, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Jan. 7, 2015.
President Barack Obama, center, meets with, from left, Secretary of State John Kerry and Vice President Joe Biden and National Security Adviser Susan Rice, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Jan. 7, 2015.

The United States is condemning the terror attack in Paris that killed 12 people at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and officials are promising to help in any way possible.

Meeting with his vice president and secretary of state, President Barack Obama praised France as America’s oldest ally and offered U.S. help "to hunt down" those who carried out the attack.

"Our counterterrorism cooperation with France, we will provide them with every bit of assistance that we can," the president said.

Earlier, Secretary of State John Kerry warned terrorists the United States and France “will never give in.”

“Today’s murders are part of a larger confrontation not between civilizations, no, but between civilization itself and those who are opposed to a civilized world," Kerry said.

At the Pentagon, there was another offer of support from spokesman Colonel Steve Warren, who said the Pentagon is not aware of "specific threat streams right now" and there have been no requests from France for any military assistance.

Warren called Wednesday's events in Paris “a horrific, terrible attack. There is no place among free people for this type of barbarism and we stand with our allies. ... We stand absolutely ready to assist the French in any way.”

U.S. Homeland Security officials also said they are closely monitoring the events, but say there is no change to America’s security posture, and the U.S. Embassy in Paris remains open as usual.

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