French police foil new terrorist attack several arrested

[Anthea]

French police foil terrorist attack and arrest several suspects

French authorities arrested several people over the weekend on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack, Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said.

“Seven individuals, from 29 to 37 years old, have been arrested, they are French, Moroccan and Algerian nationals,” he said at a press conference, as cited by French media.

“France has never faced such a [terrorist] threat before,” Cazeneuve said.

The individuals were detained in the city of Strasbourg in eastern France on the border with Germany, and in the port city of Marseilles in the south of the country, according to the minister.

The arrests came during anti-terrorist raids carried out by officers from the General Directorate for Internal Security (DGSI) and the elite RAID (Research, Assistance, Intervention, Deterrence) unit.

Of the seven men arrested, six were unknown to French intelligence, the minister said.

“We foiled a terrorist attack,” Cazeneuve said.

Earlier, reports in French media said that two men were arrested overnight from Saturday to Sunday in Marseille as part of an anti-terrorist operation. Four men were also arrested in Strasbourg overnight from Sunday to Monday.

The arrests took place ahead of the opening of the Strasbourg Christmas market, one of the biggest in Europe, on Friday. The event draws approximately 2 million visitors each year.

https://www.rt.com/news/367622-france-t ... ck-foiled/

[Anthea]

French anti-terror police arrest six men in Strasbourg and Marseille

French anti-terror police have arrested six men in the cities of Strasbourg and Marseille, security sources said on Monday (Nov 21).

Four men were arrested in eastern Strasbourg overnight on Saturday (Nov 19) to Sunday (Nov 20), with another two detained in southern Marseille the same evening, several sources close to the case said on condition of anonymity.

"Serious information made these arrests necessary," one source said, asking not to be named because he was not authorised to speak on the case.

Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve is set to give more details about the arrests later in the day.

Strasbourg has been on high alert ahead of the opening of its Christmas market, with local officials warning it could be suspended or cancelled if there were serious threats.

France remains in a state of emergency a year since attacks by Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorists on Paris left 130 people dead.

http://www.straitstimes.com/world/europ ... -marseille