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French interior minister warns of 'extremely high' terror threat

Interior minister Gerald Darmanin, speaking during a visit to the headquarters of French domestic intelligence agency on Monday, declared the the risk of terrorist attacks in France 'remains extremely high' and especially from 'terror of Sunni origin', just two days before the trial opens in Paris of 14 people accused of helping the January 15th 2015 terror attacks carried out in the name of the so-called Islamic State group.

La rédaction de Mediapart

This article is freely available.

The risk of terror attacks in France remains extremely high, the interior minister said on Monday, adding that over 8,000 people were on a national warning list of Islamist radicalisation, reports FRANCE 24.

The comments by interior minister Gerald Darmanin came two days before 14 people are due to go on trial over alleged involvement in attacks in January 2015 including on the Charlie Hebdo weekly that heralded a wave of militant strikes in France.

The threat "remains extremely high in the country," Darmanin said in a speech during a visit to France's internal security service the DGSI.

"The risk of terror of Sunni origin is the main threat that our country is facing," he added, promising a fight "without let-up".

He said 8,132 individuals had been registered on France's database of suspected Islamist radicals considered to be a potential security threat.

Fourteen alleged accomplices in the January 7th-9th 2015 jihadist attacks on the Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly, a French policewoman and a Jewish supermarket go on trial in Paris on Wednesday.

All of the perpetrators were killed in the aftermath of the assaults but lawyers for the victims and prosecutors insist the trial will be a hugely important if potentially traumatic moment.

Read more of this AFP report published by FRANCE 24.