The iconic Eiffel Tower is being retro-fitted with bulletproof glass to protect tourists in gun-controlled Paris.
NPR reports that the glass consists of panels “nearly 10 feet high and more than two inches thick.” They are being placed at the monument’s north and south ends. Metal fencing is also being put in place to prevent vehicle-born attacks.
Armed French troops already patrol and protect the Eiffel Tower as part of Operation Sentinel.
The bullet proof glass and heavily armed troops are present even though France has some of the most stringent gun control in the world. The University of Sydney’s GunPolicy.org shows that ownership of guns in France is legally limited to those persons who can “establish a genuine reason to possess a firearm.” Moreover, even those persons “must pass a background check which considers criminal, mental health and health.” Even then, individuals who demonstrate a “genuine reason” and pass the background check are required to re-pass the check every five years. They are only allowed to own certain types of guns and those guns must be registered with the government. They are only allowed “a limited quantity of ammunition.”
Twelve innocents were gunned down on January 12, 2015, when terrorists struck Charlie Hebdo headquarters in Paris. On November 13, 2015, terrorists launched a firearm-based attack at a Paris concert venue, killing 130 and wounding scores more.
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News, the host of the Breitbart podcast Bullets with AWR Hawkins, and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. Sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.