President Francois Hollande will on Friday visit the French nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the eastern Mediterranean off Syria where it is being used to conduct air strikes on Islamic State (ISIS) targets, his office said.

“He will meet military personnel taking part in operations to intensify the fight against Daesh in Syria and Iraq,” a statement from the Elysee Palace said, using another name for the jihadist group that claimed the lethal attacks in Paris three weeks ago that left 130 murdered.

Hollande is expected to meet fighter pilots and the crews that service the planes in his first visit to one of the sites from which France’s military operations against ISIS are being launched.

The Socialist president has seen a surge in his popularity ratings since he declared “war” on ISIS, after 130 people were murdered by Islamic gunmen and suicide bombers in the French capital on November 13.

AFP contributed to this report.