Silent march in Canada in memory of Paris victims

Up to 5,000 people marched in silence Sunday in Montreal in memory of victims of the Paris terror attacks, AFP reports.

Politicians, diplomats, clergy and everyday people both French and Canadian walked in the somber procession.

Parents took part with children, many of them holding small red, white and blue French flags. Others, adults, wore the flag wrapped around them. 

People carried banners with slogans such as "I am Paris" or "No one will bring us to our knees. Vive la France."

"We will not yield to intimidation. We are going to protect our values," Montreal mayor Denis Coderre said as the marchers arrived at the French consulate.

There, the crowd observed a minute of silence.

"The people of Montreal are beside us, and we are deeply touched by their show of solidarity," said Catherine Feuillet, the French consul in Montreal.

After she spoke the crowd sang "La Marseillase", the French national anthem.

"We are totally shocked, sad and downtrodden but we will not give in," said the international relations minister of Quebec province, Christine St-Pierre.

Hours after the Friday night attacks in Paris that left at least 129 dead, a makeshift memorial started taking shape outside the French consulate in Quebec, as people left bouquets of flowers and lit candles.