Fears of attacks by Islamist militants are running high in France, where more than 230 people have been killed in assaults in the past two years and emergency rule has been in place for over a year.
France is carrying out “preventive arrests” and checking on deployment of concrete barriers at Christmas markets amid fears of a strike by Islamist militants following Monday’s Berlin attack.
A government spokesman said organisers of Christmas markets had been contacted to verify all security measures, including baggage checks, in the light of Monday’s Berlin attack when a truck careered into a market killing 12 people.
Police spokeswoman Johanna Primevert said soldiers would be posted to ensure security at places of worship, where people tend to flock in larger-than-usual numbers on Dec. 25, one of the big dates of the Christian calendar in a traditionally Roman Catholic country.