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Paris is a city still reeling from the after effects of the killings at the Charlie Hebdo HQ at the beginning of January 2015 and the series of sieges thereafter in which 17 people died in total.
Security in the country remains on high alert, but sensitivities are running high too, with France's muslim community bracing itself for backlash.
Jack Parrock has this report.
IN: "Gunshots..."
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{Upsound on gunshots}
These were the shots that struck the heart of a nation.
As the Kouachi brothers raided and killed at the Charlie Hedbo HQ in Paris on the seventh of January.
It began 3 days of extreme tension across France with the killers on the run and ended in the country rising up for a unity march which saw almost 2 million hit the streets to stand in solidarity.
{Upsound into Unity March}
BITE: VOX
"These people take my religion, takes a religion of peace and of liberty and of freedom to justify their acts, they really, I don't have enough vocabulary to say how I feel."
"Terrorism is not a religion, it's apart from religion so we can't judge muslim people because of that, because people that did this they don't have God in their heart of course because we don't have a bad God that kills people."
{Down sound of Unity March}
Around 5 million muslims are thought to be living in France which equates to nearly 9 per cent of the total poputaltion.
And the country has seen a huge surge in popularity for it's far right Front National party - lead by Marine le Pen - who swept to victory in European elections in May 2014.
Madjid Messaoudene is a local councillor and Muslim community leader in the St Denis part of France who says racial tensions in the country have been high for a long time now.
BITE: Madjid Messaoudene
"In 2004 the parliament voted a law against the veil. You can't have racist laws against Muslims and call them to join you for national unity. It can't only be words. So we want this government to take off these racist laws and to prove that they really think that muslim people are part of the French republic."
One artist is being asked not to display her art because it depicted high heels on a prayer mat - an act deemed offensive to Muslims.
In addition, because Israel offered all French Jews sanctuary if they wished to flee - as one of the attacks happened at a Kosher supermarket - there is fear of a exodus of that community.
And with the three attackers all holding French passports tackling the problem of homegrown extremism has also swung into focus here.
Riva Kastoryano is a leading sociologist in Paris from research centre Science Po:
BITE: Riva Kastoryano
"The migrated and now they are born here. It's not an issue of migration. The new migrants are, maybe are not involved in this. They will maybe never be involved in these issues. These guys are from this society, went to school in this country. But North Africans are much more...more you are integrated into society, more you are individualistic, more you are on your own, and this is one of the effects. And the more you are on your own, you have all the other websites bringing you in to something."
France's Minister for social affairs says the country is a risk of social apartheid and fears of future attacks are certainly not going away yet.
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