“Given the claim of the attack by the Islamic State and the threats that weigh on our country, we decided to raise the Vigipirate plan to its highest level: urgency of the attack”Attal wrote on the social network X, after a meeting of the defense council.
The alert level had been reduced in January to category two (reinforced security or risk of attack).
“The claim for the Moscow attack comes from the Islamic State-Khorasan. This organization threatens France and has participated in several recently foiled attacks in several European countries, including Germany and France”said the prime minister’s office.
The French president, Emmanuel Macronchaired a meeting of the defense council on Sunday on “the Moscow attack and its consequences”, four months before the start of the Olympic Games in the country’s capital.
The mega sporting event will take place from July 26 to August 11.
The attack on the Crocus City Hall concert hall in Moscow on Friday left 137 dead and 182 injured, according to the most recent toll.
The Islamic State jihadist group claimed responsibility for the attack, but Russian authorities point to a Ukrainian lead, stating that the attackers tried to flee to Ukraine, where they supposedly had contacts.
Ukraine denies any involvement in this attack, the deadliest in Russia since the early 2000s.
Source: Ambito
