PARIS -The Louvre museum was shut on Wednesday after 200 guards and surveillance agents went on strike to protest the growing number of often violent pickpockets who prey on them and tourists.
“For more than a year, pickpockets have come here every day,†Thierry Choquet, a member of the main union at the Louvre, said. “They threaten guards by telling them that they know where they live.â€
The pickpockets are often minors from Eastern and Central Europe, Mr. Choquet said, who “buy entry tickets, threaten agents and attack tourists.â€
On Wednesday the museum’s management said that it would beef up security forces at the Louvre, which usually attracts between 25,000 and 30,000 visitors a day at this time of year.
The Louvre, which says it is the most visited museum in the world, earned that distinction again in 2012, attracting almost 10 million visitors.
