France officially ends state of emergency
Paris : Two years after militants killed 130 people in coordinated attacks across Paris, France officially ended a state of emergency, replacing it with the introduction of a new security law which critics say undermines civil liberties.
The new anti-terrorism law, effective from yesterday, gives police extended powers to search properties, conduct electronic eavesdropping and shut mosques or other locations suspected of preaching hatred.
“Some dread that now that we are out the state of emergency there could be a drop in vigilance, it is the opposite,” French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told journalists during a short visit to police officers guarding the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
“The level of threat is high everywhere in the world,” he said, referring to the attack in New York on Tuesday where a pickup truck driver killed eight people.
The new legislation transposes some of the measures contained in the state of emergency rule into law, although with some modifications.
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