Prankster Calls in an Eiffel Tower Bomb Threat

It was believed that the incident happened after the counter-espionage agency of France issued a statement that the risk of a terrorist attack on France remained to be consistently low. However, analysts believed that France’s historical account as a colonial master of North Africa, its participation in the Afghan war, and its most recent legislation of banning in public the Muslim burqa would certainly put the whole country at risk of being one of the prime targets of Islamic extremism.

However, the recent bomb threat had no indications that it has linked with the recent French legislation to ban the Islamic veil in public. Moreover, it has certainly drawn attention from Ayman al-Zawahri, the second in command of al-Qaida, who said that such move is equivalent to discrimination against Muslim women, which was bluntly denied by France, countering that it would certainly uphold the dignity of women.

According to authorities, there were several bomb scares that turned out to be works of pranksters. However, this kind of bomb threat that targets a monumental icon has caused great panic among individuals who are frequenting the place for their own personal reasons.

After about three hours of security checks, the area was again opened to the public. The tower last year recorded a total of 6.6 million visitors and it usually closes around 11 p.m. On the other hand, the service of Saint-Michel station located underground turned back to normal by midnight on the same day. This site was bombed by Islamic Algerian insurgents on July 25, 1995, which caused the death of eight people and 150 others injured. It was the first terroristic attack by insurgents on Paris subway commuters. The bombs used were usually made of nail-loaded canisters that are sometimes planted inside garbage cans.