EDITORIAL. Faced with the threat of attack, the executive tries to restore a semblance of national unity

Gérald Darmanin, Minister of the Interior, assured Monday evening that France foiled an attack every two months. The jihadist group Islamic State in Khorasan, which claimed responsibility for the Moscow massacre, also “conducted attempts” on French territory, according to the executive.

Four days after the Moscow attack, France was once again, on Tuesday March 26, on high alert in the face of the terrorist threat. The government is in an uproar. The executive raised the Vigipirate plan to its highest level, “emergency attack”, and Gérald Darmanin was invited Monday evening to France 2’s 8 p.m. “very high threat” Who “affects all of Europe and the whole of the West”. The Minister of the Interior even assured that the security services foiled an attack every two months, “we have never foiled so many in France”he assured, the last two attempts dating back to January 10 and March 5.

An intervention in the form of the highlight of a day where the government communicated in all directions. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal spoke of the deployment of exceptional resources, with “4000 additional soldiers”, and a reinforced presence in front of all sensitive places, particularly schools. And from Guyana where he was traveling Emmanuel Macron bluntly emphasized that the jihadist group Islamic State in Khorasan, which claimed responsibility for the Moscow massacre, had “conducted several attempts on our soil in recent months.”

Alarming statements

The threat is real of course. Nearly 130 schools have been targeted by digital threats and bomb threats in recent days. The modus operandi of the terrorists in Moscow is reminiscent of the attacks of November 13, 2015 in Paris and in particular that of the Bataclan, with the sending of terrorists from abroad. “The Islamist threat can affect everyone at any time”insisted Gérald Darmanin, referring to the number of 14 planned attacks foiled since 2020. The government therefore wants to show public opinion that it is on the lookout, particularly vigilant, especially as the Olympic Games approach.

The executive wants to try to reassure the French before the start of this global event, but also to create a semblance of national unity. Firstly in public opinion, and in the political world. Difficult for the opposition parties to argue, to oppose the strengthening of Vigipirate, or to criticize the action of the Minister of the Interior in such a heavy atmosphere. Shaken on one side by the threat of Islamist terrorism, and on the other by that of the war in Ukraine triggered by Vladimir Putin, the European election campaign will undoubtedly never take place in such an anxiety-inducing climate.