News

French TV reporter Gilles Jacquier has been killed in the Syrian city of Homs, the first Western journalist to die in the country's current unrest.

He was on a government-authorised trip to the city, the France 2 channel said.

Syrian TV said Jacquier was among eight killed. A colleague said that minutes earlier they had interviewed some people at a pro-government gathering.

Opposition groups say 15 people died around the country on Wednesday, including three in Homs.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe has called for full clarification of what happened.

"We vigorously condemn this odious act," he said in a statement.

The Syrian authorities have severely restricted access to foreign journalists since the unrest began last March.