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Police thwart planned attack on army staff in central France: minister

Xinhua, December 23, 2015 Adjust font size:

An attack targeting police and army officers in French central town of Orleans has been foiled with two potential attackers arrested, Bernard Cazeneuve said on Tuesday.

"A planned attack targeting representatives of state forces in the Orleans region was foiled last week by the DGSI (France's internal intelligence agency)," Cazeneuve was quoted as saying by local media.

Two French nationals aged 20 and 24 were arrested and placed into custody, he said in the southern city of Toulouse.

According to the French minister, the two suspects were believed to have been in contact with another French national,currently in Syria, who was probably organizing the assault.

"The investigation will look into whether he ordered the attacks that one of (the other two) has said targeted soldiers and police," he said.

France has been the target of terrorist cells' attacks following its military offensive in Mali, Iraq and Syria. The Vigipirate security system has been put at the highest level since the Charlie Hebdo series of attacks in January 2015.

A second wave of terrorist explosions and shootings rocked Paris earlier this month. 130 people were killed in the attacks for which the Islamic State (IS) the responsibility. Endit