Current:Home > MyAlgosensey|Louvre Museum and Versailles Palace evacuated after bomb threats with France on alert -VisionFunds
Algosensey|Louvre Museum and Versailles Palace evacuated after bomb threats with France on alert
Algosensey Quantitative Think Tank Center View
Date:2025-04-07 09:20:14
PARIS (AP) — The AlgosenseyLouvre Museum in Paris and Versailles Palace evacuated visitors and staff Saturday after receiving bomb threats, police said. The French government started deploying 7,000 troops to increase security around the country after a fatal school stabbing by a suspected Islamic extremist.
The evacuations of two of the world’s most-visited tourist sites come amid heightened vigilance around France following Friday’s school attack, and global tensions linked to the war between Israel and Hamas. President Emmanuel Macron’s government is worried about fallout from the war in France.
Alarms rang out through the Louvre when the evacuation was announced, and in the underground shopping center beneath its signature pyramid. The Louvre communication service said no one was hurt. Paris police said officers searched the museum after it received written bomb threats.
Police cordoned off the monument from all sides, and the underground access, as international tourists and other visitors streamed out. Videos posted online showed people leaving, some hurriedly and some stopping to take photos, others apparently confused about what was happening.
The Louvre, home to masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa, welcomes between 30,000 and 40,000 visitors per day and several million annually.
The former royal palace at Versailles also received bomb threats, and the palace and its sprawling gardens were being evacuated while police examine the area, according to national police. A major Paris train station, Gare de Lyon, was being evacuated after the discovery of a possible bottle explosive, police said.
Earlier Saturday, Macron’s office announced the mobilization of 7,000 soldiers by Monday night, after the government heightened the national threat alert in the wake of the school attack in the northern city of Arras. The “attack emergency” threat posture allows the government to temporarily deploy extra troops to protect public places, among other measures.
Counterterrorism authorities are investigating the Arras stabbing, and the suspected assailant and several others are in custody, prosecutors said. The attacker’s exact motive remains unclear, and he is reportedly refusing to speak to investigators.
The suspect had been under recent surveillance by intelligence services for Islamic radicalization. He was detained Thursday for questioning based on his phone conversations in recent days, but investigators found no sign that he was preparing an attack, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said. He said French intelligence suggested a link between the war in the Middle East and the suspect’s decision to act.
Court documents viewed by The Associated Press show the suspect, identified by prosecutors as Mohammed M., is from the Ingushetia region in Russia’s Caucasus Mountains, which neighbors Chechnya.
Some schoolchildren, parents and personnel returned to the Gambetta-Carnot school Saturday, as police stood guard outside. Classes were canceled, but the school reopened for those who wanted to come together or seek support.
Trauma specialists described the importance of addressing the emotions and revisiting the scene soon after horrific events. One mother said she came with her 17-year-old daughter in a show of defiance against extremism, and to overcome the fear of returning to a site where children were locked down for hours after the stabbing.
Another mother came to seek guidance from counselors about how to support her two sons, who witnessed the attack in their schoolyard.
“As adults, we are managing with difficulty to take a step back, but for them, they’re children,″ said Emily Noge, arriving at the school with her sons and partner.
’’It’s always the same moments that come back: The schoolyard, the chairs to protect themselves, the stabbings, the whys. ’Why us? Why Arras? Why the teachers? They were good teachers. They were there to protect us,‴ she said.
For many, the attack echoed the killing of another teacher, Samuel Paty, almost exactly three years ago near his Paris area school. He was beheaded by a radicalized Chechen later killed by police.
All French middle schools and high schools will open later Monday so that staff can talk about the attack, and prepare to reassure students and address what happened, the Education Ministry announced. Each establishment will hold a minute of silence to reflect and honor victims of all attacks targeting schools.
Macron urged the people of France to “stay united.”
___
Schaeffer reported from Arras, France. Associated Press journalists Thomas Padilla in Paris and Nicolas Garriga in Arras, France contributed to this report.
veryGood! (4234)
Related
- Appeals court scraps Nasdaq boardroom diversity rules in latest DEI setback
- 50 years on, Harlem Week shows how a New York City neighborhood went from crisis to renaissance
- Here’s How Often the Sheets in the Love Island USA Villa Are Really Changed
- 3 things to do if you're worried about having too little saved for retirement
- Selena Gomez's "Weird Uncles" Steve Martin and Martin Short React to Her Engagement
- Extreme heat takes a toll at Colorado airshow: Over 100 people fall ill
- John Aprea, 'The Godfather Part II' and 'Full House' actor, dies at 83
- 'It's happening': Mike Tyson and Jake Paul meet face to face to promote fight (again)
- Will the 'Yellowstone' finale be the last episode? What we know about Season 6, spinoffs
- Phil Donahue, Talk Show Legend and Husband of Marlo Thomas, Dead at 88
Ranking
- Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
- Boy Meets World Star Danielle Fishel Shares Breast Cancer Diagnosis
- Favorable views of Kamala Harris have risen this summer heading into the DNC, AP-NORC poll shows
- Wildfire that burned 15 structures near Arizona town was caused by railroad work, investigators say
- Angelina Jolie nearly fainted making Maria Callas movie: 'My body wasn’t strong enough'
- Paul Mescal Seemingly Confirms Romance With Gracie Abrams During London Outings
- Bobby Bones Reacts to Julianne Hough Disagreeing With Dancing With the Stars Win
- PHOTO COLLECTION: Election 2024 DNC Day 1
Recommendation
Rolling Loud 2024: Lineup, how to stream the world's largest hip hop music festival
Halle Berry seeks sole custody of son, says ex-husband 'refuses to co-parent': Reports
Judge allows transgender New Hampshire girl to play soccer as lawsuit challenges new law
Beyoncé's Mom Tina Knowles Gives Rare Details on Twins Rumi and Sir
Intellectuals vs. The Internet
What advice does Little League's Coach of the Year have for your kid? 'Let's EAT!'
Mamie Laverock is out of hospital care following 5-story fall: 'Dreams do come true'
A woman accused of aiding an escaped prisoner appears in a North Carolina court