France to step up security for New Year's Eve due to 'very high' terrorist threat

France is set to implement high-security measures on New Year’s Eve, with 90,000 law enforcement officers scheduled to be deployed, according to domestic intelligence chief Céline Berthon. In Paris alone, 6,000 officers will be stationed as Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin anticipates over 1.5 million attendees for celebrations on the Champs-Elysées. The heightened security measures are in response to a “very high” terrorist threat facing the country, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Friday. Darmanin said there would be around 90,000 police deployed across France, with 6,000 of them in Paris. There would also be 5,000 soldiers deployed from the ‘Sentinelle’ unit, set up to deal with terrorist threats. “I have called for an extremely high turnout of police and security forces given the context of the very high terrorist threat due to, clearly, what is happening in Israel and in Palestine,” Darmanin told reporters. European security officials have stated that there is a growing risk of attacks by Islamists radicalised by the Israel-Hamas war. With inputs from agencies.