Tourists were evacuated from the Eiffel Tower and the surrounding area on Wednesday after police received an anonymous phone call from someone warning them of a plan to blow up the structure. The area below the tower was cordoned off by soldiers and police after a package was discovered beneath the iron rafters.

Although the package did not contain an explosive device, the authorities conducted a thorough search of the monument. It took just two hours for the tower to be declared safe and tourists were allowed back. The Eiffel Tower is considered to be one of the prime targets for terrorist groups, al-Qaeda and those who have been angered by the air strikes against Libya.

A Paris police spokesman has confirmed that following the discovery of a suspicious looking package some 4,000 tourists had to be evacuated. Any attack on the monument would have devastating consequences as it is extremely popular with hoards of visitors to the French capital. If it were to come down, the 1,063 ft high building would cause a massive amount of destruction.

Last September, a similar bomb threat meant the tourist attraction had to be evacuated. An anonymous call was put into the police in which a person warned that the Saint Michel train station and the Eiffel Tower were being targeted. At the time, intelligence agencies were warning that France was under threat of attack from a North African branch of al-Qaeda.

France’s support of those opposed to Colonel Gaddafi’s regime has once again made it a potential target.