France to Deploy 7,000 Soldiers Following Islamist Terror Attack in Arras

France is set to deploy 7,000 soldiers after a Chechen-origin man stabbed a teacher to death and severely wounded three other adults at a school in the northeastern town of Arras, according to an announcement made by the Elysee presidential palace on Saturday.

The attack, which took place on Friday, was swiftly condemned by President Emmanuel Macron as an act of “Islamist terror.” The town of Arras is home to large Jewish and Muslim communities. In response, the highest level of security alert has been raised in France.

The deployment of the soldiers will be completed by Monday evening, as revealed in a statement by the president’s office. Macron chaired a crucial security meeting on Friday to address the situation and announced that a separate attempted attack in another region had been successfully foiled by security forces.

After visiting the school where the attack occurred, Macron spoke out against the act of terrorism, stating that the school had fallen victim to the “barbarity of Islamist terrorism.” He commended the courage of the victim, who bravely defended others and potentially saved many lives by trying to stop the attacker.

The suspected attacker, identified as Mohammed Moguchkov, is in his twenties and hails from Chechnya, a predominantly Muslim region in southern Caucasus, Russia. According to an AFP report, Moguchkov was already listed in a French national register known as “Fiche S” as a potential security threat. The DGSI, France’s domestic intelligence agency, had been surveilling him electronically and physically.

Preliminary investigations reveal that during the attack, Moguchkov cried out “Allahu akbar!” (God is greatest) in Arabic, signaling a possible motive tied to religious extremism.

With the deployment of 7,000 soldiers, France aims to strengthen security measures and prevent any further acts of terrorism within its borders.