Four arrested over army 'terror plot'

FRENCH intelligence officers are questioning four people arrested on suspicion of planning a terror attack on a military base.

The attackers reportedly planned to behead a senior military official earlier this year. The men are aged between 16 and 23 and were arrested near Marseille, Lyon, the Nord department and the Yvelines in the Paris suburbs.

French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said the main suspect had been under surveillance by intelligence officials following comments made on social media. One of the suspects was a former member of the French navy.

The alert level in France remains high after the January attacks in Paris and an attempt to blow up an industrial plant near Lyon last month.

There is increased security at industrial sites around France this week after a double blast at a petrochemical plant near Marseille on Tuesday, which authorities are still investigating.