Arras, France (AFP) — Schools across France on Monday held a minute of silence for the teacher stabbed to death in what President Emmanuel Macron called an act of "Islamist terror."

The nationwide tribute will come a day after thousands gathered in Arras, northeastern France to pay their respects to 57-year-old Dominique Bernard.

His killing on Friday has sent shockwaves through the country and led to calls for tighter security at schools. The government has already put the country on high alert and deployed 7,000 troops.

The attack in Arras, home to large Jewish and Muslim populations, came against a backdrop of growing conflict in the Middle East.

The suspected perpetrator, a 20-year-old Russian man, has been arrested for the killing and for having also seriously wounded three others at the school he used to attend.

"Arras is being tested, but Arras is standing … we are standing," Mayor Frederic Leturque told a crowd of more than 5,000 people gathered in the central square Sunday.

Of those wounded, one who was hospitalized with the most serious injuries "seems to be better," a source close to the matter told AFP.

The attack came almost three years to the day after the 16 October 2020 beheading of teacher Samuel Paty near his school in a Paris suburb.

"It's unbearable to have to relive the same fright," said Catherine Piecuch of the FSU education union. "The state must take all measures to ensure the protection of staff and students."