Suresnes site abandoned for terrorism memorial museum project

The saga of the Terrorism Memorial Museum continues. The museum will ultimately not open in Suresnes (Hauts-de-Seine), but at another site in the Île-de-France region, which will be unveiled by the end of September, Agence France Presse (AFP) learned from the institution on Monday, September 8. The decision follows a meeting at the Élysée Palace on Tuesday, September 2, between advisors to President Emmanuel Macron and officials from the public interest group in charge of the project.

The Elysée Palace proposed "three or four" locations under the Ministry of the Armed Forces in the Paris region instead of the Suresnes site, including one within Paris itself, added historian Henry Rousso, president of the museum's preparatory mission. "The Suresnes site was abandoned because it was too expensive," Rousso said.

The choice of the new site, less expensive than that of Suresnes because it requires less extensive work, should be announced at the end of September, a few weeks before the tenth anniversary of the attacks of November 13, 2015. Contacted by AFP, the Elysée did not respond.

The museum was to be built on the site of a former open-air school located on the hill of Mont Valérien, about ten kilometers west of Paris, and classified as a historic monument. But "the restoration of the historic building absorbed nearly 90% to 95% of the construction budget," Mr. Rousso emphasized.

Announced in 2018 by Mr. Macron, the project has experienced multiple vicissitudes, notably due to a tense budgetary context. Initially planned for 2027, the future memorial museum "aims to pay tribute to the victims of terrorism in France and around the world," according to the website dedicated to it.

Funded by four ministries (justice, culture, interior, and the armed forces), it also aims to present the history of terrorism on an international level. In November 2024, Michel Barnier's government abandoned the project for economic reasons, sparking anger among several victims' associations. In January, Mr. Macron finally reaffirmed his commitment to carrying it out.