THREE of the four people killed when a gunman opened fire on a British family in the French Alps were shot in the middle of the forehead.

A man, named by neighbours as Baghdad-born businessman Saad al Hilli, 50, his wife Iqbal and her elderly mother were found dead in a BMW in a car park near Lake Annecy. A French cyclist, found nearby, was also shot dead in the execution-style attack.

Police took eight hours to discover a four-year-old girl who was found alive underneath her dead mother's skirt because "they didn't want to disturb the crime scene".

The child, named by neighbours in the family's home town of Claygate in Surrey as Zeena, told police she "could not tell the difference between the good guys and bad guys".

Her seven-year-old sister, named locally as Zeinab, was found near the BMW after being hit three times over the head with a blunt instrument.

Police are guarding the local hospital, where doctors remain hopeful she will come out of her coma, and where Zeena is also being treated.

Cyclist Sylvain Mollier, a father-of-three from the nearby town of Ugine, was found dead with gunshot wounds. It is believed he may have been shot after witnessing the massacre.

A British cyclist – a former member of the RAF – stumbled upon the shocking scene and spotted the seven-year-old lying in the road, placing her in the recovery position. He had been overtaken earlier by Mr Mollier.

In Britain, French President Francois Hollande joined Prime Minister David Cameron in pledging to get to the bottom of the tragedy, adding the authorities will do their "utmost to find the perpetrators".

Public prosecutor Eric Maillaud described the attack as "an act of extreme savagery".

The four-year-old was found "terrorised, motionless, in the midst of the bodies" after fellow campers at a nearby site told officers the family had two children, said Mr Maillaud, who defended the delay in finding her.

Police said she was "frozen still" under her mother in the British-registered BMW.

The little girl said: "There was noise and I was scared."

Mr Maillaud said: "She was hidden under the bodies for some eight hours and didn't move for the whole time. She could not tell the difference between the good guys and bad guys.

"She spontaneously began to smile and speak in English when the policeman took her in his arms and pulled her out of the car.

"She had heard the noises, the cries but she couldn't say more, she is only four-years-old. She's fine now – she's being well looked after."

Mr al Hilli, the BMW's driver, had been working as a freelance engineer for Guildford-based IT firm Surrey Satellite Technology after escaping Saddam Hussein's Iraq.

Investigators believe they are searching for a professional hitman after revealing that three of the victims all received clinical "bullet shots to the centre of the forehead".

An automatic pistol was used, and it is believed the killer "targeted" the victims rather than indiscriminately firing into the car.

Mr Maillaud described the scene as like something from a film. He said 15 cartridges were found around the BMW and a "very large number" of shots had been fired.

He also revealed that Swedish and Iraqi passports had been recovered along with the driver's British passport.

Mr Maillaud said the ex-RAF man said he came across the BMW estate with the engine still running.

"He also saw coming towards the car a young girl who collapsed before him," he said. "He quickly came to her and put her in a side position and called the police and ambulance service and everyone came to the scene."

Mr al Hilli and his family had been holidaying in a caravan at the Le Solitaire du Lac campsite in nearby Saint-Jorioz.