Terror attacks: police raid 168 locations in France, place 104 under house arrest

A total of 168 locations across France have been raided overnight, the French interior minister said.

A man is detained by a police officer after a raid in the Mirail district in Toulouse, southwestern France, Monday, Nov. 16, 2015. France’s Prime Minister Manuel Valls says there have been 150 police raids overnight in the country. Image by AP Photo

Bernard Cazeneuve added that 104 people have been placed under house arrest in the past 48 hours.

He said: “It’s just a start, these operations are going to continue, the response of the Republic will be huge, will be total. The one who targets the Republic, the Republic will catch him, will be implacable.”

Meanwhile, a major action with heavily armed police is under way in the Brussels neighbourhood of Molenbeek amid a manhunt for a suspect of the Paris attacks.

Police arrested three suspects in Molenbeek on Saturday and continued house searches. The special action began early on Monday.

Anti terrorism police officers enter a building during a raid in the Mirail district in Toulouse, southwestern France, Monday, Nov. 16, 2015. Image by AP Photo

Neighbours were told to stay away from the street where masked police have sealed off a section.

A Belgian man had earlier been identified as the suspected mastermind of the attacks.

Abdelhamid Abaaoud is also believed to be linked to thwarted attacks on a Paris-bound high-speed train and a church in the Paris area, an official said.

Seven people are in custody in Belgium suspected of links to the attacks and an international arrest warrant has been issued for Belgian-born Frenchman Salah Abdeslam, 26, who is believed to be involved in the attacks. He is still at large.

France has urged its European partners to move swiftly to boost intelligence sharing, fight arms trafficking and terror financing, and strengthen border security in the wake of the attacks.

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