France is on high alert following a recent terrorist attack in the northern town of Arras. In response to heightened security concerns, two iconic landmarks in the country, the Louvre Museum in
Paris, and the Versailles Palace west of the capital, were evacuated on Saturday after receiving bomb threats, according to French police. Both sites remained closed for the rest of the day due to "security reasons."
The Louvre, renowned for housing masterpieces like the Mona Lisa, typically welcomes between 30,000 and 40,000 visitors daily and several million annually. A spokesperson for the museum, which is the largest in the world, revealed to Agence France-Presse (AFP) that they had "received a written message indicating a risk to the museum and its visitors." In response to the current national "emergency attack" alert, they decided to evacuate and close the museum temporarily while conducting necessary security checks.
The Louvre's communication service assured that no one had been harmed, and no incident had been reported. Police officers cordoned off the area, overseeing the orderly departure of tourists and visitors.
In addition to the Louvre, the former royal palace at Versailles also received bomb threats. French national police coordinated the evacuation of the palace and its extensive gardens while they conducted security inspections. Concurrently, Gare de Lyon, a major train station in Paris, was evacuated following the discovery of a potential bottle explosive, as reported by the police.
On the same day, amid concerns that the Israel-Hamas conflict might incite violence in foreign capitals, France declared its intentions to deploy up to 7,000 soldiers under the highest warning level. The deployment of troops from Operation Sentinelle is expected to conclude by Monday evening, according to the Elysee presidential palace.
Operation Sentinelle is a French military initiative involving the deployment of soldiers, police, and gendarmes, initiated in the aftermath of the January 2015 terrorist attacks to protect areas of the country considered vulnerable to terrorism.
President Emmanuel Macron addressed the nation on Thursday, disclosing that 582 religious and cultural facilities in France would receive reinforced police protection in response to the Hamas attack on Israel. While speaking in Arras, he emphasized the need for the French people to "stand shoulder to shoulder" and "remain united."
Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin took the step to ban pro-Palestinian demonstrations in France until further notice on Thursday, citing their potential to incite public disturbances. In defiance of this order, several hundred individuals gathered in Paris and other French cities on Thursday, chanting pro-Palestinian and anti-Israeli slogans. Police in Paris resorted to using tear gas to disperse the protesters and reported the arrest of approximately 10 out of the 3,000 attendees. Photo by Alessio Mercuri, Wikimedia commons.