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Read our Privacy and Cookies policies to find out more. 1. News 2. World 3. Europe Eiffel Tower terror alert prompted by three men with backpacks, police source says The tower was closed to visitors on Sunday afternoon after the men were spotted by a police helicopter * Caroline Mortimer * @cjmortimer * Monday 21 September 2015 07:46 BST * French soldiers patrol in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris as the capital was placed under the highest alert status after heavily armed gunmen stormed French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo and shot dead at least 12 people in the deadliest attack in F Eiffel Tower Three men spotted carrying backpacks were behind the security alert that saw the Eiffel Tower closed to visitors, according to a police source. The Parisian tourist attraction was shut on Sunday after terror suspects were seen by a police helicopter scaling the 986-foot structure just before 9am local time. A spokesman for the Parisian police told told Le Figaro newspaper they were not ruling out the possibility there were three men involved. The police source said: "There is a strong likelihood that the suspects were able to flee in the morning by parachute before police arrived." Read more * Paris police hunt driver of car that crashed through barricades at Tour de France Hundreds of people were queueing to get into the attraction when they were turned away and a police cordon was set up. It was later reopened at 2pm. France has been on high alert since since the Charlie Hebdo massacre in January when Islamist terrorists murdered 12 people in the offices of the satirical magazine for publishing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad. In August, three passengers on a train from Amsterdam to Paris subdued a gunman attempting to open fire. Read more * French prosecutors charge Lyon factory attacker with terrorism and murder A policeman at the site told Agence France Presse the three men could possibly have been extreme sportsmen attempting to parachute off the structure without permission, but that they had to be vigilant. Isis and Al-Qaeda have previously said they would target the Eiffel Tower- which is France’s most popular tourist attraction. So far, no arrests have been made. The Independent has contacted the Parisian police for comment. In pictures: Cities across the world light up landmarks in show of unity with France * * * * * 8 show all In pictures: Cities across the world light up landmarks in show of unity with France * * * * * * * * * 1/8 New York, USA The Empire State Building is lit up in the colors of the French flag to pay tribute to the victims of the shooting by gunmen at the Paris offices of weekly satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, in the Manhattan borough of New York * 2/8 London, UK The colours of the French national flag are reflected in the fountains of Trafalgar Square as they are projected in tribute to the Paris terror attacks, on the The National Gallery in London * 3/8 London, UK Tower Bridge is illuminated with the colours of the French Tricolore flag, in support of the victims of recent terrorist attacks in France * 4/8 London, UK The London Eye is alternately lit in the colours of the French national flag in tribute to the 17 people killed in the Paris terror attacks, in London * 5/8 Rome, Italy Rome's city hall (Campidoglio) is lighted with France's colors, blue, white and red in Rome in remembrance of the victims of an attack against Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly which killed 12 people in Paris * 6/8 Berlin, Germany The writing on the facade of the French embassy reads 'Je suis Charlie!' (I am Charlie!) to commemorate the victims of the terrorist attack on French satire magazine 'Charlie Hebdo', during a vigil at the French embassy in Berlin * 7/8 Paris, France A sign on the Arc de Triomphe reads "Paris is Charlie" in solidarity with the victims of the shooting at the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo in Paris * 8/8 Paris, France As a tribute for the victims of terrorist attack the lights of the Eiffel Tower were turned off for five minutes at 8pm local time, the day after the massacre in Paris * More about: * Paris Comments [i100.png] Most Popular Video Sponsored Features * Follow us: * * * User Policies * Privacy Policy * Cookie Policy * Code of Conduct * Complaint Form * Contact Us * Contributors * All Topics * Archive * Newsletters * iJobs * Subscriptions * Advertising Guide * Syndication * Evening Standard * Novaya Gazeta * Install our Apps [p?c1=2&c2=10476312&cv=2.0&cj=1]