French police step up security over terror attack threats for PSG clash

French police chiefs on Tuesday revealed they plan to step up security in Paris ahead of the Champions League clash between Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona on Wednesday night.

The first leg of the quarter-final football match is expected to attract nearly 50,000 people to the Parc des Princes on the western fringes of Paris.

Thousands more will be following the tie in cafes and bars in and around the capital.

"The prefect of police prefect has considerably strengthened security resources," said French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin during a visit to River Police officers on Tuesday.

"There has been a clear threat publicly mentioned by the Islamic State," Darmanin added.

Last month the group claimed responsibility for an attack at a concert hall just outside Moscow which left 144 people dead and hundreds injured.

Days after the assault, the French prime minister, Gabriel Attal, announced that France would raise its alert status to emergency - the highest level.

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"The Islamic State threatened the Champions League quarter-finals, not specifically in France, via one of its communication agencies, which disseminated messages on social networks," the French news agency AFP reported.

In one of the messages, a masked fighter with an assault rifle poses in front of photographs of the four stadiums in Madrid, London and Paris that will host the quarter-finals. "Kill them all", wrote the fighter.

A spokesperson added that the games at the Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid and the Emirates Stadium in London would take place on Tuesday night.

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