In an unprecedented move, the Louvre Museum in Paris, the world’s largest museum, closed at noon on Saturday due to “security reasons.” The closure came amidst heightened alert levels in France following an Islamist attack in the northern part of the country.
A spokesperson for the cultural center stated, “The Louvre received a written message indicating a risk to the museum and its visitors,” leading to the decision to evacuate and close the museum for the entire day to conduct necessary verifications, as reported by AFP after the closure announcement on the former social media platform, X (formerly Twitter).
France escalated its alert level to “terrorist emergency”—the highest level—on Friday night after a radicalized young individual killed a teacher at an educational institution in Arras, northern France. President Emmanuel Macron termed the incident “Islamist terrorism.”
In response to the situation, the Élysée Palace announced the deployment of 7,000 military personnel across the country. These soldiers will remain deployed until Monday night and until further notice, amid concerns that the conflict between Hamas and Israel might impact France.
The Louvre Museum assured that individuals who had reserved their visits would be refunded for their tickets due to the unexpected closure.