France is set to deploy 10,000 soldiers on home
soil by Tuesday and post almost
Speaking
a day after the biggest French public demonstration ever recorded, in honor of
the victims, Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said the country remained at
risk of further attacks. Soldiers would guard transport hubs, tourism sites and
key buildings and mount general street patrols.
"The
threats remain and we have to protect ourselves from them. It is an internal
operation that will mobilize almost as many men as we have in our overseas
operations," Le Drian told reporters after a cabinet meeting.
The victims,
including journalists and police, died in three days of violence that began on
Wednesday with a shooting attack on the political weekly Charlie Hebdo, known
for its satirical attacks on Islam and other religions. Many at Sunday's march
wore badges and carried placards declaring "I Am Charlie".
The Charlie
Hebdo attackers, two French-born brothers of Algerian origin, singled out the
weekly for its publication of cartoons depicting and ridiculing the Prophet
Mohammad.
Charlie
Hebdo's remaining members are working on an eight page issue due to come out on
Wednesday with a one-million copy print run. Its lawyer, Richard Malka, told France Info radio there would be caricatures
of the Prophet Mohammad.
"We
will not give in. The spirit of 'I am Charlie' means the right to blaspheme
," he said, adding that the front page would be released on Monday
evening.
The three
days of bloodshed ended on Friday with a hostage-taking at a Jewish deli in
Paris where four hostages and another gunman were killed. That gunman declared
allegiance to Islamic State insurgents and said he was acting in response to
French military deployments against militant Islamist groups overseas.
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