The Eiffel Tower Has Been Closed Down

According to AFP, France's most recognizable monument, the Eiffel Tower, has been closed until further notice. This news comes after tragedy struck Paris on Friday night, when 120 people were killed in a series of calculated terrorist attacks across the French capital. The eight suspects believed to have carried out the attacks are now reportedly dead, and ISIS has claimed responsibility for the terrorists' actions. The world is in mourning, and the French government has wasted no time in securing its borders and taking action to ensure that last night's events don't happen again.

Given that much of the violence took place at Paris' historic Bataclan theater, officials have unsurprisingly announced that, in addition to the Eiffel Tower, all of its theaters, schools, museums, performance spaces, and markets will be closed until further notice as well.

As Mashable points out, the move to close Paris' public spaces is a measure to ensure that Parisians remain in the safety of their homes in the aftermath of Friday's attacks. This is, of course, a huge decision, considering up to 20,000 people visit the Eiffel Tower on a daily basis, many of them tourists.

This isn't the first time the Eiffel Tower has been closed due to terrorist activity. In September, the monument closed for more than five hours after it was reported that a group of men were ascending the Tower with large backpacks. It reopened later the same day, and it's believed that the men in question escaped the scene, likely via parachute. It's highly unlikely that they're the same men involved in Friday's attacks, though the identities of any of the suspects have not yet been revealed.