World

Concern grows over possible terrorist attacks around the world

Since the war in Israel began, France has been forced to evacuate several places due to bomb threats. In Germany, a synagogue was attacked with Molotov cocktails.

Imagen de archivo del Palacio de Versalles.
(Cordon Press)
ROSANA RáBAGO SAINZ
October 18, 2023
5 minutes read

The war between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas continues to evolve and has already become an international conflict. Countries around the world, especially in Europe, are dealing with different terrorist threats.

France has been the most affected country. Since the war broke out, the country has experienced almost daily threats about possible attacks. This has led to several evacuations. The first of them took place months before the war began, in August of this year. On August 12, the Eiffel Tower, in Paris, was evacuated around 12:00 p.m. due to a bomb threat. Everyone at the monument and in the surrounding area was forced to evacuate:

An hour and a half later, Le Parisien reported that the famous monument reopened, as the threat had turned out to be a false alarm. However, at 7:30 p.m. (local time), Paris police received a new bomb threat. The Eiffel Tower was closed down at 09:00 p.m. (local time). It reopened after detecting that the threat, once again, was not credible.

Evacuations at the Louvre Museum and the Palace of Versailles

A week after the massacre, France once again experienced a new episode of possible terrorist attacks. The Louvre Museum closed its doors on Saturday, October 14 at 12:00 p.m. after receiving "a written message indicating a risk to the structure and its visitors." For this reason, the museum posted on its X account (formerly Twitter) that it was forced to close throughout Saturday:

Dear visitors, for security reasons, the Louvre Museum is closed today, Saturday, October 14. People who have booked a visit for today will be refunded. Thanks for your understanding.

It was not the only event that occurred in France that day. The Palace of Versailles announced that it was also evacuating all visitors after receiving a bomb threat:

Dear visitors, for security reasons, the Palace of Versailles will evacuate visitors and be closed for the rest of today, Saturday, October 14. Thanks for your understanding.

Both threats turned out to be false alarms, but the Palace of Versailles received a new threat just three days later. Once again it had to evacuate both the historic monument and its surroundings, after receiving a "terrorist threat":

Dear visitors, for security reasons, the Palace of Versailles will evacuate visitors and be closed for the rest of today, Tuesday, October 17. Thanks for your understanding.

According to the French news network BFM TV, the decision to evacuate was made after receiving a bomb threat. The bomb squad was sent to the area, as confirmed by the National Police. A suspicious package was found at the scene.

Train stations and airports have been evacuated throughout France

Historical monuments were not the only ones affected by terrorist threats in France. On the same day that the Louvre Museum was evacuated, the Gare de Lyon train station in Paris was reported to have been evacuated after receiving a notice of a possible terrorist threat:

This Wednesday, France experienced a similar incident. This time, CNN reported, up to eight airports were forced to evacuate travelers. According to a spokesperson for the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGAC) and the French Ministry of the Interior, the airports in Toulouse, Biarritz, Pau, Nice, Lyon, Beauvois (Tille), Rennes and Nantes had to evacuate people who were waiting to catch a flight that day as well as cancel or delay several flights around the world.

Many of these airports posted on X to report they were temporarily closing. Hours later, they announced that warnings had turned out to be false alarms and that they were reopening.

Travel is resuming at #Bron airport and normal traffic at #Lyon-Saint Exupéry airport.

Evacuation from Lille airport after a bomb threat. State security services are on site.

The Prefecture has given the green light for staff and passengers to return to the airport.

A synagogue and Jewish community center were attacked in Germany

The capital of Germany, Berlin, was also not spared from terrorist threats. However, this time they were real. Early this Wednesday, Reuters reported that two hooded men threw two Molotov cocktails at a synagogue and a Jewish community center. Both attackers were arrested. According to the Berlin Police, they shouted antisemitic phrases. Neither the buildings nor the people inside them or in their immediate vicinity were harmed.

The Chancellor of Germany, Olaf Scholz, condemned the attack: "I want to expressly say that I am outraged. It outrages me personally what some are shouting and doing," said the German Chancellor during his visit to Egypt. Hours later, Scholz posted about the attack on the synagogue on his X account, ensuring that "antisemitism has no place in Germany":

Attacks on Jewish institutions, violent riots in our streets: this is inhumane, abhorrent and must not be tolerated. Antisemitism has no place in Germany. I want to thank law enforcement officers, especially in this situation.

Other threats around the world

Europe is not the only part of the world that has received threats of possible terrorist attacks. Other countries around the world have also been targets of these attacks. An example of this is Argentina where, La Nación reports, both the United States embassy and the Israeli embassy received false bomb threats.

The first to receive a bomb threat was the Israeli embassy. There, the police informed the Argentine newspaper that they evacuated the building and, as a preventive measure, blocked off traffic on Mayo Avenue. At 11:00 a.m., the bomb threat was announced to be a false alarm.

An hour earlier, the United States embassy received a bomb threat "via email." The building's security chief alerted the authorities from Neighborhood Police Station 14C. They responded to the call and investigated the facilities. At 12.00 p.m. (local time), the authorities officially reported that there was no risk:

There are no credible threats against the United States Embassy in Argentina and we continue to operate normally. Additionally, Argentine Police personnel have been temporarily placed outside the Embassy due to recent events around the world. US Embassy officials confirm that the building has not been evacuated.

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