France’s defense minister says more than 10,000 troops will be deployed across the country by Tuesday. European governments are reviewing security measures following last week’s terror attacks that killed 17 people in France.
Speaking to French broadcaster BFMTV, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the country “must not let down its guard” because the security threat to France is “still present.”
He says the highest level of France’s terror alert system is being maintained.
The 10,000 troops due to be deployed by Tuesday is the first time so many have been deployed in the country. French Interior Minister Bernard Cazaneuve said nearly 5,000 security force troops would be tasked with protecting the country’s more than 700 Jewish schools.
“The French state right now is most anxious to avoid a repeat of the attacks,” said Shaun Gregory, an international securities expert at Britain’s Durham University. “I think at this moment therefore putting extra troops on the ground, perhaps rolling up a few plots earlier than they would like to have done. That kind of thing I think is inevitable right now.”
Also Monday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry announced he will travel to France on Thursday and Friday for talks on countering extremist violence. He said U.S. intelligence and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are coordinating with French investigators.
The top diplomat told reporters that he and President Barack Obama had been “deeply engaged” with French authorities since the first attack in Paris last week.
Source-VOA
