Bertrand Delanoe, the gay mayor of Paris, France, was placed under special protection after a warning from the US security service told French police that he could be the target of terrorist attacks by al-Qaeda.
Through monitoring Osama Bin Laden's organization on the internet, the CIA (US intelligence agency) discovered that the mayor is on Al-Qaeda's hit list because he is a prominent public figure.
"I'm calm. I have the information I need and I have complete confidence in the work that the police carry out to combat security problems, especially terrorism”, declared Bertrand.
According to the police spokesman, a special escort was deployed to protect the mayor. He further stated that the threat could also have other motivations – Delanoe is seen as a potential candidate to run in the 2012 presidential elections for the socialist party.
Delanoe came out during a press conference in 1998, before becoming mayor of the French capital. In 2002, he was stabbed during the White Night in Paris (an event that served as inspiration for Marta Suplicy to create Virada Cultural in São Paulo), while greeting voters. Azedine Berkane, the attacker, declared at the time that he hated “politicians, socialists and homosexuals”.
