Paris to boost security around Eiffel Tower to prevent attack

The Eiffel Tower, the symbol of Paris, will soon be protected by bulletproof glass walls 2.5 metres high, part of a plan to prevent attacks at the monument.

According to latest reports, the 20-million-euro ($21.4 million) wall to be erected this autumn will replace the metal fences thrown up around the 324-metre tower during the Euro football tournament in France last year.

The terror threat remains high in Paris, and the most vulnerable sites, starting with the Eiffel Tower, must be the object of special security measures, deputy mayor Jean-Francois Martins told a press conference.

The glass walls will prevent individuals or vehicles storming the site visited by six million people each year, he added.

They could turn off tourists who simply want to have their pictures snapped under the tower without visiting the venerable Iron Lady.

Martins said that visitors will continue to have access to the foot of the tower - after undergoing security checks free of charge.

Security has been boosted after a string of jihadist attacks that claimed 238 lives around France between January 2015 and July 2016.