France tourists warned to stay alert due to risk of terrorist attack

Tourists in France have been warned to practice ‘maximum vigilance’ due to the risk of a terrorist attack.

A fatal knife attack by a person with a record of Islamic radicalisation has forced France to go on high-security alert.

There are reportedly concerns more attacks could happen as a result of the Israel-Hamas war, prompting the government to mobilise 7000 troops for security and increase the threat alert level.

One day after the knife attack on Friday, October 13, which saw a teacher killed and two people wounded by a former student in the northeastern town of Arras, two of the world’s most-visited attractions were evacuated for security reasons.

Tourists were evacuated from the Louvre Museum and Palace of Versailles after receiving threats to visitors.

Chers visiteurs,
 
Pour des raisons de sécurité, le musée du #Louvre ferme ses portes ce jour, samedi 14 octobre.
Les personnes ayant réservé pour une visite dans la journée seront remboursées.

Nous vous remercions de votre compréhension. pic.twitter.com/2cEllnWCIa

— Musée du Louvre (@MuseeLouvre) October 14, 2023

At midday on Saturday, October 14, alarms sounded out at the Louvre and visitors were quickly removed from the premises before it was secured by police and closed for the day to perform security checks.

Officials at the museum, which has approximately 35,000 visit per day, had received a written warning about a “risk to the museum and its visitors”, AFP reported.

On the same day, hours later, an anonymous online bomb threat forced the Palace of Versailles to evacuate tourists.

Après le musée du Louvre ce matin, évacuation en cours au Château de #Versailles. La raison reste pour l'heure Inconnue. Tout se passe dans le calme. pic.twitter.com/TLz3DMn8zQ

— Charles Ducrocq (@DucrocqCharles) October 14, 2023

In the UK, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has warned travellers to stay alert due to the ‘imminent threat of a terrorist act’.

New Zealand’s SafeTravel website by MFAT has assigned France a level 2 of 4 and asks travellers to “exercise increased caution in France due to the ongoing threat of terrorism”.

The level has been assigned due to “a number of serious and particularly violent attacks in the past”, the entry states.

However, in the list of attacks and conflicts cited, the most recent is from October 2020. The Israel-Hamas conflict is not mentioned.