“Islamophobia”

The headmaster of a school in Paris has been threatened with murder—after asking one of his pupils to remove her headscarf—forcing him to leave his job. In turn, the French government has announced that it intends to lodge a complaint against the young woman behind the scandal.

The affair is further proof of the authorities’ inability to deal with Islamist threats, particularly in schools.

In a 40-minute audio message published on Thursday, the terrorist group Islamic State (IS) threatened attacks on Jews and Christians all over the world, while once again claiming responsibility for the Moscow massacre that left more than 140 dead and 360 injured.

In the message, IS spokesman Abu Hudhaifah al-Ansari called on the movement’s “lone wolves” to “attack and target crusaders (Christians) and Jews everywhere,” particularly in Europe, the U.S., and Israel during the month of Ramadan (which ends April 10th). 

The French interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, has met intelligence services to assess the terrorist threat to the country, after the Moscow concert hall attack claimed by Islamic State raised fresh security fears over the Paris Olympics.

One of the biggest security challenges facing the organisers of the Games in the French capital is to protect the opening ceremony on 26 July. It is planned to be an unprecedented, open-air extravaganza, which for the first time in Olympic history will not take place within the confines of a stadium, but instead involve a flotilla of 94 boats carrying thousands of waving athletes down a 6km (3.7-mile) stretch of the Seine, followed by a further 80 boats carrying media and security, while an estimated 222,000 people gather along the river’s edge and 200,000 more watch from buildings.

France’s prime minister says a teenage girl will be sued by the state for falsely accusing her headteacher of striking her in a heated exchange over her wearing an Islamic head-covering.

The headteacher insisted that the pupil remove her head-covering inside the school, in accordance with French law.

He resigned after death threats circulated on social media.

Convict then deport.

Austria, France, and Italy have all issued warnings of potential terrorist threats to Europe by the Islamic State (IS) following the group’s Moscow concert hall attack that killed 139 people.

The French government increased the country’s security alert to its highest level, which means more soldiers will be put on standby and ready to patrol sensitive sites, including schools. According to Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, France has thwarted two attack attempts by IS since the start of the year, including a foiled attack on the city of Strasbourg.