Published: 06:20 EST, 20 September 2015 | Updated: 06:48 EST, 20 September 2015
The Eiffel Tower was shut to all visitors today after a terrorist suspect with ‘a large rucksack’ was seen ascending France’s most popular tourist attraction.
Anti-terrorist police supported by a helicopter could be seen at the iconic landmark following the alarm being raised at around 9am.
‘There’s been a report of a man with a rucksack,’ said a police source assisting with the evacuation of the tower.
The Eiffel Tower was shut to all visitors today due to a terrorism scare amid reports of a man seen carrying a rucksack. File image used
The unidentified man was seen in the tower at least an hour before it opened, said another police source. By early afternoon, he had still not been found.
Hundreds of people were already waiting to go up, but were told to vacate the area, as ticket booths were shut.
The tower has frequently been threatened by terrorist groups, including al-Qaeda and ISIS, with security stepped up since attacks by three radical Islamist gunmen in the city in January.
A police cordon was formed around the tower and people were moved to the banks of the nearby River Seine.
There have been numerous bomb alerts at the Eiffel Tower in recent years, and France is currently on the highest state vigilance alert.
But as today’s hunt for the man continued, police did not rule out the possibility that he might be an extreme parachutist hoping to jump off the structure.
‘It’s happened in the past,’ said the same police source. ‘The parachutist hides his kit the night before, and then gets into the tower and jumps off, while videoing.’
In 2005, a Norwegian parachutist died while attempting to jump off the tower.
The 1,050ft tall iron lattice tower was built for the 1889 World’s Fair, and soon turned into a prestige symbol of modern France.
It is the most visited paid-for monument in the world, with some 7million people a year going up it.
For all these reasons, French security officials frequently highlight the tower’s vulnerability to terrorist attack.
