Five Russians held in France on suspicion of planning terror attack

Five Russians have been arrested in southern France on suspicion of planning a terror attack, local prosecutors say. Four of the suspects, all from the Caucasus region, were detained in Montpellier and a fifth was arrested around 40 miles away in Beziers on Monday. Prosecutors said certain “products” were recovered during searches of addresses linked to the suspects; Midi Libre newspaper reported a cache of explosives was found. It was not immediately clear if the latest arrests were connected to the investigation into the violence at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a kosher supermarket.

The fight against hatred, anti-Semitism in all its forms, racism – these fights are absolutely urgent.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls

Four men accused of having links to the jihadists who staged the Paris attacks were due to appear in court today. The Paris prosecutor’s office said the men are suspected of providing logistical support to Amedy Coulibaly, who shot dead a policewoman and then killed four people after seizing hostages inside a kosher supermarket. France has been on high security alert since the attacks earlier this month. Chechnya, a predominantly Muslim region in Russia, has seen the largest demonstrations against cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed published by the magazine.

The social misery is compounded by the daily discriminations, because someone does not have the right name, the right colour of skin, or because she is a woman.

Prime Minister Valls