Vandals on Saturday damaged the tomb of General Charles de Gaulle, leader of France’s resistance to Nazi occupation during World War Two and founder of the Fifth Republic.

The municipal authority of Colombey, in the east of France where the tomb is situated, said on its Twitter account that the act of vandalism had taken place on Saturday evening and that an inquiry was underway. No arrests have been made.

French media said the vandals had stepped onto the tomb and damaged the tomb’s cross.

France Info radio quoted local mayor Pascal Babouot as saying he did not think there was a political motive behind the act, but it drew swift condemnation from politicians. </s> French politicians are reacting with anger and dismay after the tomb of France's wartime hero and former President Gen. Charles de Gaulle was vandalized.

French media say police are hunting for two people, one of whom was filmed Saturday by security cameras knocking a cross off the top of the tomb in Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises, the village in eastern France where De Gaulle lived and is buried.

President Emmanuel Macron, in a statement Sunday from his office, asked that the tomb be quickly repaired, adding that De Gaulle's memory is "dear to all French people."

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe tweeted his "sadness and consternation" and called the vandalism "an act against France." </s> Vandals on Saturday damaged the tomb of General Charles de Gaulle, leader of France’s resistance to Nazi occupation during World War Two and founder of the Fifth Republic.

The municipal authority of Colombey, in the east of France where the tomb is situated, said on its Twitter account that the act of vandalism had taken place on Saturday evening and that an inquiry was underway. No arrests have been made.

French media said the vandals had stepped onto the tomb and damaged the tomb’s cross.

France Info radio quoted local mayor Pascal Babouot as saying he did not think there was a political motive behind the act, but it drew swift condemnation from politicians.

“Shame on those who vandalised General de Gaulle’s tomb. It has dealt a blow to my patriotic heart,” said French budget minister Gerald Darmanin on his Twitter account.

De Gaulle was a towering figure of 20th century French history, leading the nation’s resistance to Nazi occupation in World War Two, putting an end to its colonial war in Algeria in 1962 and serving as France’s president for a decade until 1969.

He founded France’s Fifth Republic, which granted the president sweeping powers, and set a distinctive foreign policy that rejected the concept of U.S. and Soviet world domination, giving the French an independent voice on the world stage. </s> File picture: French Republican guards attend a ceremony in front the Croix de Lorraine at the Charles De Gaulle Memorial during a ceremony to mark the 40th anniversary of the death of General de Gaulle in Colombey-les-Deux-Eglises November 9, 2010. REUTERS/Francois Nascimbeni/Pool

PARIS (Reuters) - Vandals on Saturday damaged the tomb of General Charles de Gaulle, leader of France’s resistance to Nazi occupation during World War Two and founder of the Fifth Republic.

The municipal authority of Colombey, in the east of France where the tomb is situated, said on its Twitter account that the act of vandalism had taken place on Saturday evening and that an inquiry was underway. No arrests have been made.

French media said the vandals had stepped onto the tomb and damaged the tomb’s cross.

France Info radio quoted local mayor Pascal Babouot as saying he did not think there was a political motive behind the act, but it drew swift condemnation from politicians.

“Shame on those who vandalized General de Gaulle’s tomb. It has dealt a blow to my patriotic heart,” said French budget minister Gerald Darmanin on his Twitter account.

De Gaulle was a towering figure of 20th century French history, leading the nation’s resistance to Nazi occupation in World War Two, putting an end to its colonial war in Algeria in 1962 and serving as France’s president for a decade until 1969.

He founded France’s Fifth Republic, which granted the president sweeping powers, and set a distinctive foreign policy that rejected the concept of U.S. and Soviet world domination, giving the French an independent voice on the world stage.

De Gaulle died in 1970. </s> Vandals on Saturday damaged the tomb of the leader of France’s resistance to Nazi occupation during World War Two and founder of the Fifth Republic, General Charles de Gaulle.

French media say police are hunting for two people, one of whom was filmed Saturday by security cameras knocking a cross off the top of De Gaulle’s tomb.

France Info radio quoted local mayor Pascal Babouot as saying he did not think there was a political motive behind the act, but it drew swift condemnation from politicians.

President Emmanuel Macron requested Sunday that the tomb be quickly repaired, adding that De Gaulle's memory is "dear to all French people."

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe tweeted his "sadness and consternation" and called 

 the vandalism "an act against France."

De Gaulle was a towering figure of 20th century French history, leading the nation’s resistance to Nazi occupation in World War Two, putting an end to its colonial war in Algeria in 1962 and serving as France’s president for a decade until 1969.

He founded France’s Fifth Republic, which granted the president sweeping powers, and set a distinctive foreign policy that rejected the concept of U.S. and Soviet world domination, giving the French an independent voice on the world stage. </s> PARIS (AP) - France's national police say a 36-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of threatening to attack security services at one of the country's most-visited tourist sites.

Police said the unnamed man was arrested Sunday night in the city of Caen, around 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the Mont-Saint-Michel abbey that was closed earlier that day after death threats were made against security services.

French authorities evacuated tourists after the incident that triggered a regional manhunt, according to the national gendarme service.

Police attend the scene of an evacuation at Mont Saint-Michel, on France's northern coast, Sunday April 22, 2018. Authorities are evacuating tourists and others from the Mont-Saint-Michel abbey and monument in western France after a visitor apparently threatened to attack security services. (Denis Surfys via AP)

The exceptional evacuation of one of France's most-visited tourist sites came after a string of sporadic attacks around France in recent years targeting police, some of them fatal. </s> Police evacuated the historic fortified island of Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy on Sunday after a man threatened he would kill police at the popular tourist destination.

According to the Ouest-France newspaper, the individual escaped before authorities arrived.

"An individual has entered Mont Saint-Michel. He made fairly specific threats against the police in front of a coffee shop," the gendarmerie told broadcaster France Info.

A local journalist posted unconfirmed images on Twitter of tourists being evacuated and armed police at the abbey.

Police searched houses on the island in the northern region of Normandy, but were unable to find the inidividual, who was heard uttering threats. Local officials said the site was "free of risk" and due to reopen.

"All houses have been checked, all public and private venues were inspected by the police," police district prefect Jean-Marc Sabathe told the BFM news channel. "I'm almost certain that he's gone."

Surrounded by water at high tide, Mont Saint-Michel attracts more than a million visitors a year to its abbey and

 other sites, making it the biggest tourist attraction in France outside Paris.

Read more: France marks three years since Charlie Hebdo attack </s> Mont Saint-Michel evacuated after man threatens police

Updated

French authorities have re-opened one of the country's most popular tourist sites, Mont Saint-Michel abbey, hours after a major evacuation and house-by-house search for a visitor who reportedly yelled "I'm going to kill a cop".

The exceptional and elaborate evacuation of one of France's most-visited tourist sites came after a string of sporadic attacks around France in recent years targeting police, some of them fatal.

Details of the threat were unclear, but the national gendarme service said authorities ordered the evacuation on Sunday morning (local time) of one of France's most-visited tourist sites as a precaution.

It was re-opened at 2pm local time and local authorities tweeted that "all risks have been averted".

"All houses have been checked, all public and private venues were inspected by the police," district prefect Jean-Marc Sabathe said.

"I'm almost certain that he's gone."

There was contradictory information about the circumstances of the threat. An official with the national gendarme service said the man made the threat on one of the shuttles servicing the site.

Mr Sabathe said the man made the threat when he was trying to stage a street performance and got in an argument with a cafe worker.

He said the man was caught on video surveillance cameras.

Mont Saint-Michel mayor Yann Galton told television channel France 3 Normandie the suspect had yelled "I'm going to kill a cop".

The suspect was described as a young man aged between 20 and 30, wearing a white t-shirt and dark trousers, according to Le Figaro.

Mont Saint-Michel, which is surrounded by water at high tide, draws more than a million visitors a year to its 10th century abbey and other sites, making it France's biggest tourist attraction outside Paris.

At the height of the evacuation three police helicopter circled over the peninsula, notably famous for being isolated by high tides, and the surrounding region.

ABC/wires

Topics: tourism, police, crime, france

First posted </s> PARIS (AP) — Emmanuel Macron’s campaign press office says the courtyard outside the Louvre museum where the centrist French presidential candidate has planned to celebrate election night has been evacuated because of a security alert.

Campaign spokeswoman Pauline Calmes told The Associated Press that the Esplanade du Louvre, in downtown Paris, was evacuated on Sunday as a precaution. She did not specify the nature of the threat, but says police ordered the evacuation.

Macron picked the dignified internal courtyard of the renowned palace-turned-museum as the location for his celebration party.

The Louvre already was being heavily guarded after an extremist attacker targeted soldiers near the museum during the presidential campaign.

Voters across France have been casting ballots in the presidential election runoff that could decide Europe’s future, choosing between independent Macron and far-right populist Marine Le Pen.

The unusually tense and unpredictable French presidential campaign ended with a hacking attack and document leak targeting Macron on Friday night. France’s government cybersecurity agency is investigating the hack.

Either candidate would lead France into uncharted territory, since neither comes from the mainstream parties that dominate parliament and have run the country for decades.

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Colombey authorities report the tomb of French national hero Charles de Gaulle has been vandalized.