Police officers and firefighters gather in front of the offices of the Charlie Hebdo in Paris Photo: Philippe Dupeyrat/AFP/Getty Images
French politicians rushed to offer their commiserations in the aftermath of
the mass shooting at the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris, but they have been
battling fears about terrorism for years.
The success of Marine Le Pen, the far-Right Front National leader, has been
the most visible sign of the rising tide of Islamophobia in France, which
increased again in the wake of several attacks in December.
Miss Le Pen said that she was "horrified" by the attack on the
satirical magazine, saying she felt "huge sadness for the victims and
sent her condolences to the families of the victims."
In December, the French Prime Minister Manuel Valls had to call for calm after
a series of attacks – where cars were used as battering rams on festive
crowds – at Christmas.
Mr Valls called for “cool-headedness”, while the President Francois Hollande
urged the nation not to panic.
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The attacks were seen as a symptom of serious problems in French society,
which has a large immigrant population from former French colonies including
Algeria.
For decades, France has had problems with the “banlieues”, the suburbs where poor immigrants live in large numbers. With residents having little hope of escaping the impoverished areas, the banlieues have become fertile recruitment grounds for extremists.
The attacks last month marked a new challenge for the French security services. Soldiers were deployed after three separate attacks in three cities across France. In one attack in Nantes, a van driver crashed into a Christmas market, injuring ten people. In Dijon, 13 people were injured after a driver shouting “Allahu akbar” (or “God is great”) drove into pedestrians at five different locations in the city.
Miss Le Pen, the daughter of the right-wing politician Jean-Marie Le Pen, has seen her popularity surge in recent years. She came third in the presidential elections in 2012, behind the Mr Hollande and the former president Nicolas Sarkozy.
The MEP is the focus of a book by the French author Michel Houellebecq which was featured in the most recent edition of Charlie Hebdo.
Mr Houellebecq had to deny claims that his novel Submission – on a Muslim running France according to the laws of conservative Islam – was a "Christmas present" to Miss Le Pen.
There are concerns that racism is on the rise in France. Last year, an image of a 16-year old Roma boy left for dead in a trolley in Paris’ northern suburbs shocked the nation.
Critics say government policy has stigmatised France's 20,000–strong Roma community, who mostly come from Romania and Bulgaria.
For decades, France has had problems with the “banlieues”, the suburbs where poor immigrants live in large numbers. With residents having little hope of escaping the impoverished areas, the banlieues have become fertile recruitment grounds for extremists.
The attacks last month marked a new challenge for the French security services. Soldiers were deployed after three separate attacks in three cities across France. In one attack in Nantes, a van driver crashed into a Christmas market, injuring ten people. In Dijon, 13 people were injured after a driver shouting “Allahu akbar” (or “God is great”) drove into pedestrians at five different locations in the city.
Miss Le Pen, the daughter of the right-wing politician Jean-Marie Le Pen, has seen her popularity surge in recent years. She came third in the presidential elections in 2012, behind the Mr Hollande and the former president Nicolas Sarkozy.
The MEP is the focus of a book by the French author Michel Houellebecq which was featured in the most recent edition of Charlie Hebdo.
Mr Houellebecq had to deny claims that his novel Submission – on a Muslim running France according to the laws of conservative Islam – was a "Christmas present" to Miss Le Pen.
There are concerns that racism is on the rise in France. Last year, an image of a 16-year old Roma boy left for dead in a trolley in Paris’ northern suburbs shocked the nation.
Critics say government policy has stigmatised France's 20,000–strong Roma community, who mostly come from Romania and Bulgaria.
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