The French capital of Paris was shaken on Friday after simultaneous terrorist attacks were carried out in six different locations, killing 127 people and injuring more than 200 others, according to the latest news.
President Francois Hollande declared a state of emergency, stopped Schengen visas and temporarily closed the borders.
Mohamed Gad, a political science professor at the University of Marseille, said this is the first time since 1965 that the country has taken such drastic measures. He added that both immigrants and foreigners would be strictly scrutinized by security, particularly in crowded places, such as shopping malls and metro stations, and he expects the tight security measures to continue until after Christmas.
Mostafa Bakry, spokesperson for the French People’s Current, said Arabs and Muslims, in particular, will suffer the most from these security measures. “The perception linking terrorism with Arabs and Muslims will affect these communities in Europe,” he said, contending that many French nationals joined the Islamic State terrorist group after the French intervention in Syria.
The Egyptian community of 250,000 people, most of them living in Paris, is the second largest after London, according to the Egyptian State Information Service. Additionally, Egyptian contractors prefer to employ Egyptian workers, some of whom do not have legal residence papers.
A contractor said the French authorities reviewed all the Egyptian employee papers after the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack.
Ahmed Mostafa, head of the French-Egyptian club in Nice, said French law allows for assembly in private clubs. “We do not know what will happen now,” he said. “And what will foreign patients do now that Schengen visas have been stopped?”
Mostafa Kamel al-Sayed, a political science professor at the American University, said that this incident is as grave as 9/11. “I believe it will increase the intervention of the Western countries in the fight against the Islamic State,” he said, expecting restrictions on public freedoms, not only in Paris, but throughout Europe.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
