Eiffel Tower to get bulletproof glass walls to protect against terrorism
The Eiffel Tower will soon be protected by bulletproof glass walls 2.5 metres high as part of a plan to prevent attacks at the monument, Parisian authorities said on Thursday (09/02/2017).
The walls, costing €20m, will be built later this year at the northern and southern ends of the landmark, the city said in a statement. On the western and eastern sides, “inelegant temporary” barriers that were thrown up around the 324-metre tower during last year’s Euro 2016 football tournament will be replaced by ornate fencing.
Deputy mayor Jean-Francois Martins told a news conference: “The terror threat remains high in Paris, and the most vulnerable sites, starting with the Eiffel Tower, must be the object of special security measures.”
The glass walls will prevent individuals or vehicles storming the site, which is visited by six million people a year, he added.
Some councillors quoted by Le Parisien newspaper said they feared the walls would turn the tower into a “fortress”. They feared it could turn off tourists who simply want to have their pictures snapped under the tower without visiting the Iron Lady. Martins said visitors would continue to have access to the foot of the tower – after undergoing security checks – free of charge.
Removing the existing unsightly barriers would give visitors and locals alike “a nicer view of the monument”, he said. Architects will design the walls so they blend in with the river, which borders the tower to the north, and with the Champ de Mars park to the south, he added.
Security has been boosted around French tourist sites, transport hubs and places of worship after a string of jihadist attacks that claimed 238 lives around the country between January 2015 and July 2016.
The continuing nature of the threat was brought home last week by an attack on troops patrolling outside the Louvre museum. The suspect, a 29-year-old Egyptian who shouted “Allahu Akbar”, was shot in the stomach after slightly injuring a soldier with a machete. The assault came on the day France launched its formal bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics, lighting up the Eiffel Tower in the blue, white and red national colours.
The tower, which was inaugurated for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, will undergo a major upgrade as part of the bid.
Source: theguardian.com