French President Francois Hollande announced late Thursday that national authorities have received 9,000 tips about Islamic extremism through a government hotline and website, but said the country needs to do even more to combat extremism.
“We should create de-radicalization centers,” Holland said Thursday, according to the Associated Press.
The French leader said tips on potential terrorist-like activity began rolling in during 2014, but he did not specify when the government began accepting information from citizens, according to reports.
Despite French officials’ claim that 600 Muslims have fled the country for Syria and Iraq, the nation’s response to the tip center indicates people are paying more attention to possible security threats around them.
Hollande admitted not all of the tips were connected to plots or danger, but said the significant public response was a sign that France needed a program to assist those who have signed on to this religious sect.
