France steps up passenger screening at airports

[PARIS] France is boosting passenger screening at its airports, responding to a request from Washington for extra security for US-bound flights over fears that Islamist radicals could be plotting new attacks using hard-to-detect bombs.

The French move, to come into force today, follows similar action already implemented by Britain, and notably impacts Europe's two busiest hubs, Heathrow and Charles de Gaulle.

Combined, an average 2.5 million passengers a day pass through the two airports.