One person is dead and five others hurt after gunmen opened fire on a reception at a French wedding hall.

The gunmen stormed the venue in Thionville, a city in northeastern France on late Saturday as approximately a hundred guests were in attendance of a Turkish wedding party.

Two people were seriously injured and one of them was in critical condition, according to AFP. A pregnant woman was among the wounded.

"At a quarter past one in the morning, a group of people went outside to smoke in front of the hall, and then three heavily armed men arrived and opened fire in their direction," a police source told the media outlet.

The suspects arrived in a 4x4 vehicle, "probably a BMW," they added.

Sources have suggested that the attack could potentially be linked to settling a score between drug traffickers 

Authorities allegedly believe that a settling of scores connected to drug trafficking could be a possible motive behind the violence.

"The wedding was not targeted as such, it was people who were at the wedding."

In a statement to the BBC, prosecutor Francois Capin-Dulhoste said the men had fired "several dozen times", adding four people had been hit by the bullets. The victims are said to be between 25 and 50 years old.