Visitors were evacuated from the Louvre museum in Paris on Saturday, which closed “for security reasons” while France is on high alert following an attack in the northeastern town of Arras.

The country triggered its top alert level after a man stabbed a teacher to death and severely wounded three others at a school on Friday.

A spokeswoman for the Louvre, the largest museum in the world, told AFP it had “received a written message stating that there was a risk to the museum and its visitors”.

Chers visiteurs,
 
Pour des raisons de sécurité, le musée du #Louvre ferme ses portes ce jour, samedi 14 octobre.
Les personnes ayant réservé pour une visite dans la journée seront remboursées.

Nous vous remercions de votre compréhension. pic.twitter.com/2cEllnWCIa

— Musée du Louvre (@MuseeLouvre) October 14, 2023

“We have decided in the current national context of an ’emergency attack’ alert to evacuate and close it for the day, while we carry out the necessary checks,” the spokeswoman said.

Police in Arras arrested the suspected attacker, Mohammed Moguchkov, who had cried the Arabic phrase “Allahu akbar!” (God is greatest).

Authorities have suggested a probable link to the ongoing violence in the Middle East, with President Emmanuel Macron condemning an act of “Islamist terror”.

He was among 10 people being held in custody on Saturday, a police source told AFP, including several members of his family.

The Louvre said visitors who had booked a ticket for the day would be reimbursed.