London holds silent vigil in solidarity with Charlie Hebdo

Hundreds of people gathered in Trafalgar Square on Wednesday evening to hold a near-silent vigil in solidarity with the victims of the Charlie Hebdo massacre.

The crowds held pens and paper aloft following the murder of at least 12 people in a shooting at the French satirical magazine earlier that day.

High profile figures at the magazine including its editor and chief cartoonist, Stéphane Charbonnier, known as “Charb”, and Jean Cabut, or “Cabu”, a veteran of several French newspapers and reportedly the highest paid cartoonist in the world, were both killed.

One woman at the vigil didn't have a pen so she held up her keyboard instead.

As well as pens and keyboards, those attending held signs saying 'Je Suis Charlie', which means “I am Charlie” in French. The #jesuischarlie hashtag began trending on Twitter around an hour after the attack as an expression of solidarity with victims of the attack.

The Independent's Andrew Griffin who is at the vigil reported:

The atmosphere is really quiet and really powerful. The bells from the church next to the square seem louder somehow. There are hundreds of people here and everyone is facing towards a tricolour in the middle of the square.

More: The moving tributes to the victims of the Charlie Hebdo shooting