Macron: IS wing that claimed Moscow carnage also attempted attacks in France

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that his country’s intelligence had confirmed an Islamic State group carried out the attack in Moscow on Friday, and that IS has made several attempts on French soil in recent months.

France is on high alert after Friday’s attack at a Moscow concert venue, which was claimed by IS and left more than 130 people dead.

France raised its terror alert warning to the highest level after the Moscow siege, indicating that authorities believe an attack could be imminent. This level allows for increased security presence in certain public areas. It had also been put in place last October after a teacher was stabbed to death by an Islamist extremist.

Speaking from Cayenne, in French Guiana, Macron said Monday that French intelligence had confirmed that “an Islamic State entity fomented this attack [in Moscow] and carried it out.”

“This particular group, which is believed to be involved in this attack, has carried out several attempts on our soil in recent months,” Macron added.

“The Islamist threat can affect everyone at any moment,” French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told reporters in Roubaix, in northern France, adding that authorities were foiling attacks “almost every month.” Darmanin vowed that French security services would be ready in time to handle all threats that could arise during the upcoming Summer Olympics in Paris.

Macron offered for France and Russia to “increase [their] cooperation” on counterterrorism, but spoke out against “instrumentalization or distortion” after Putin’s attempt to pin the Moscow attack on Kyiv without evidence.