Palace of Versailles evacuated after bomb threat for second time in just days

The historic Palace of Versailles in Paris is currently being evacuated following a suspected bomb threat, as reported by local sources.

Police officials, cited by local media, have confirmed the deployment of a bomb squad to the site as a precautionary measure.

It marks the second evacuation within a matter of days for the iconic former French royal residence, following a similar anonymous bomb threat that occurred just this past Saturday.

The palace as well as the Louvre Museum in Paris were also evacuated of visitors and staff on Saturday.

The former royal palace’s account on X, formerly known as Twitter, said: “For security reasons, the Palace of Versailles is evacuating visitors and closing its doors today Tuesday October 17. Thank you for your understanding.”

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The post gave no other details.

France stepped up its terror alert level in the wake of the school attack in the northern city of Arras last Friday by a suspected Islamic extremist.

Counterterrorism authorities are investigating Friday’s stabbing, and the suspected assailant and several others are in custody, prosecutors said.

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The suspect had been under recent surveillance by intelligence services for radicalisation.

Court documents show he is from the Ingushetia region in Russia’s Caucasus Mountains.

The prosecutor said the alleged assailant was a former student there and repeatedly shouted “Allahu akbar,” the Arabic phrase for “God is great,” during the attack.

Prosecutors are considering charges of terrorism-related murder and attempted murder against the suspect.

The dead educator was Dominique Bernard, a French language teacher in the northern city of Arras at the Gambetta-Carnot school, which enrols students ages 11-18. Another teacher and a security guard were in critical condition with wounds from the stabbing, police said. The counterterrorism prosecutor said a cleaning worker was also injured.

France’s anti-terror prosecutor said Tuesday a suspected Islamic extremist declared allegiance to the Islamic State group before fatally stabbing the teacher.

The prosecutor, Jean-François Ricard, said, in a press conference, an audio recording was found by police investigators in the suspect’s phone. In it, the alleged attacker declared allegiance to the Islamic State and expressed “his hatred of France”.

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