A number of French media websites have gone down after the country was warned about a wave of cyber-attacks. The sites of Le Parisien and 20 Minutes were amongst a number that became inaccessible, although the vast majority were soon restored. The French government said that 20,000 different sites had been targeted.
The attacks come after a turbulent period in France, during which a number of journalists were killed following depictions of the prophet Mohammed in the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. The latest copy of the magazine also features the prophet, in a move that has angered Muslims and led to further violence being predicted.
Vice Admiral Arnaud Coustilliere, head of cyber security at the French military blamed the attacks on “well known Islamist hackers”. The publishers of Charlie Hebdo have released the first post-attack magazine as a smartphone app due to high demand. Millions of copies were printed of a magazine that usually has a circulation of just 60,000.
Pope Francis has criticized Charlie Hebdo, claiming that anyone insulting his faith would deserve a punch. The Pope branded the surviving staff at Charlie Hebdo as “provocateurs” and said that he could understand why Muslims were so angry about the new issue. Several newspapers have refused to show the front page in print or on their websites in fear of retaliation.
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