On the eve of the 10th anniversary of the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks, dozens of people, including Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and representatives of victims’ associations, gathered at the Place de la République to honor the victims.

Since November 8, Parisians have been invited to leave a candle, a flower, or a note at Place de la République, a symbolic site of remembrance.

“Freedom and secularism must be defended, they’re essential,” said Régis Lancelot, 71, who came to lay flowers in memory of the victims.

Early in the evening, the Eiffel Tower lit up in blue, white, and red. The monument will shine in the colours of the French flag again tomorrow night.

Arthur Dénouveaux, a Bataclan survivor and president of the victims’ association Life for Paris, said the “solidarity of these spontaneous memorials” remains strong a decade later.

“It’s very important to see that we’re still not alone," he said.

On Nov. 13, 2015, nine Islamic State group gunmen and suicide bombers struck within minutes of one another at several locations in the deadliest violence to strike France since World War II.

They targeted fans at the Stade de France stadium and cafe-goers and ending with a bloodbath in the Bataclan, killing 130 people.

Two survivors who later took their own life as consequence of the physical and mental trauma also have been recognized as victims.

Philippe Duperron, whose 30-year-old son Thomas was killed at the Bataclan, now leads the victims’ group 13onze15 Fraternité et Vérité.

He called the memorial ceremony "an act of resistance that unites us all.”

Among those attending the memorial was Joséphine, a young Parisian who came to lay a flower in honour of the victims.

“I was very young when it happened. I was lucky. I didn’t know anyone who was directly affected by the attack,” she said, holding a white flower in her hand.

On Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron will attend official ceremonies at each of the 2015 attack sites before inaugurating a memorial garden.

AP video shot by Nicolas Garriga