"I grew up in Paris and my two brothers are still living there," he said. "I haven't been able to reach them to see they're okay.

"I just want to hear from them. That's all I want now."

His younger brother Olivier works in the arts, setting stages for concerts.

Watching the rolling coverage as the atrocities unfolded Mr Lesle said he had been trying to cast aside fears the worst had happened.

"I just hope he wasn't there at the Bataclan," he said. "He usually works night time and so he's difficult to catch. I'm just very worried … about both of them."

Shootings and explosions reported in six locations across the city led President Francois Hollande to declare a state of emergency.

Scenes reminiscent of a war zone beamed across the world as police and military forces worked to manage the fallout of two suicide attacks and a bombing at State de France in the city's north, a mass shooting inside Bataclan Concert Hall and shootings at restaurants and other sites in the city centre.

Mr Lesle, a former Parisian, said the year which begun with the traumatic Charlie Hebdo attacks was ending with further tragedy.

More than a hash tag born of crisis, he said "Je Suis Paris" was a message of support to people in Paris but also reflected a determination not to submit to fear.

"They can't bring down the country by military power, that's not going to happen, but what terrorists want is to change the way we live, what we think, our sense of freedom," he said.

"If you show fear – that's what they want. We need to show them we will stand up and oppose that. We must show what we believe in."