France looks to keep emergency measures for summer sporting events

France plans to extend a state of emergency declared after the Paris terror attacks to cover the period of the Euro 2016 football tournament and the Tour de France cycle race, Prime Minister Manuel Valls says.

The measure giving the state heightened security powers was imposed following the November 13 jihadist attacks that left 130 dead and hundreds wounded in the French capital, and was already extended by three months in February until May 26.

“The state of emergency cannot be a permanent state, but for these major events… we need to have these powers, these possibilities, under the control of a judge, under the control of parliament, to allow for the best response in the face of terrorism,” Valls says on French radio.

The two events overlap, with the Euro 2016 tournament to be held in France from June 10 to July 10, while the Tour de France is set for July 2-24.

The measure must still be approved by the French parliament.

— AFP