Three airports in France evacuated amid security threats

Three French airports in the cities of Lyon, Toulouse and Lille were evacuated following security alerts, police said.

Three French airports in the cities of Lyon, Toulouse and Lille have been evacuated following security alerts, police say.

Emailed threats of an attack were received at the airports, prompting evacuations and security checks. Meanwhile an abandoned piece of luggage briefly disrupted operations at the airport in Nice. 

The Palace of Versailles has also been evacuated for the third time since the weekend.

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Chateau of Versailles apologised to visitors after they were cleared out due to “security reasons”.

They are the latest in a series of evacuations around France this week that have included popular tourist attractions such as the Louvre Museum.

All the threats up to Wednesday have been proven false.

Police have not elaborated on the contents of the emails received by the airports but the prefecture for the Lyon region said the threat at the airport was a false alarm and reminded the public that communicating false information can lead to prison and a heavy fine.

The Louvre Museum and the Palais de Versailles were evacuated on Saturday, and the royal palace was again evacuated on Tuesday.

Forensic officers swarm Gambetta high school in Northern France. / Credit: AP

A high school in Arras, in northern France, was evacuated on Monday ahead of a moment of silence in schools around France, three days after the murder of a teacher at the Arras school allegedly carried out by a former student and suspected Islamist extremist.

France has raised its threat alert to its highest level. The anti-terrorism prosecutor said on Tuesday that the suspectĀ declared his allegianceĀ to the so-called Islamic State group before the fatal stabbing.

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