A 27-year-old Tunisian man, Dhafer M., has been charged and placed in pre-trial detention in Paris on suspicion of planning a jihadist-inspired terrorist attack targeting a Paris museum and members of the Jewish community, according to France’s Parquet national antiterroriste.
The suspect was arrested on May 7 as part of an investigation into terrorist criminal conspiracy aimed at preparing violent acts against individuals. According to the anti-terror prosecutor, he is suspected both of planning a violent extremist attack and of considering a “hijra” – travel to join the Islamic State in Syria or Mozambique.
Investigators reportedly found indications that the planned attack could have targeted a Paris museum, with media reports from Le Monde and Le Parisien identifying the Louvre Museum and the Jewish community in Paris’s 16th arrondissement as possible targets, although no precise target had been finalized.
The investigation began after a police stop in central Paris on April 28, during which the suspect was allegedly found driving with a fake license. Authorities later discovered he did not possess a valid residency permit and transferred him to administrative detention. According to reports, the suspect was born in Djerba and arrived in France in 2022 via Lampedusa.
Analysis of his mobile phone allegedly uncovered jihadist propaganda videos, hundreds of images of firearms and knives, and online searches related to bomb-making and explosive damage. Investigators also reportedly found a video in which the suspect pledged allegiance using symbols commonly associated with jihadist groups.
The suspect denies planning a terrorist attack, according to Le Monde. The investigation has been entrusted to France’s domestic intelligence agency, the Directorate-General for Internal Security, and anti-terror police units.
