High alert in France: Paris's Louvre museum evacuated 'for security reasons'

The Louvre Museum in Paris is evacuating all visitors and staff and closing early Saturday because it received a written threat. It said the move was linked to the government’s decision to put France on high alert after a fatal school stabbing by a suspected extremist.

The country triggered its top alert level after a man stabbed a teacher to death and severely wounded three others at a school on Friday.

A spokeswoman for the Louvre, the largest museum in the world, told AFP it had “received a written message stating that there was a risk to the museum and its visitors”.

“We have decided in the current national context of an ’emergency attack’ alert to evacuate and close it for the day, while we carry out the necessary checks,” the spokeswoman said.

Police in Arras arrested the suspected attacker, Mohammed Moguchkov, who had cried the Arabic phrase “Allahu akbar!” (God is greatest).

The French government raised the threat alert level and is deploying 7,000 troops to increase security after Friday’s school attack. The government is also concerned about the fallout in France from the war between Israel and Hamas.

The Louvre, home to masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa, welcomes between 30,000 and 40,000 visitors per day.

Authorities have suggested a probable link to the ongoing violence in the Middle East, with President Emmanuel Macron condemning an act of “Islamist terror”.

The Louvre said visitors who had booked a ticket for the day would be reimbursed.

With inputs from agencies.