France will provide elite police officers to safeguard Israeli athletes throughout the Olympic Games due to security concerns as the opening ceremony gets underway Friday.
“There are those who seek to undermine the celebratory nature of this joyous event,” Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz wrote in a letter to his French counterpart.
“We currently have assessments regarding the potential threat posed by Iranian terrorist proxies and other terrorist organizations who aim to carry out attacks against members of the Israeli delegation and Israeli tourists during the Olympics,” Katz added.
European authorities have remained on high alert as the Olympics bring an influx of threats and security concerns, especially with the presence of Israel. Some terrorist and radical groups want to see the country punished for its actions in the Gaza Strip.
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Tensions remain so high that a video of a fake Palestinian threat of attacks on France made the rounds on social media before a security source could tell the AFP that the video likely originated from “a Russian operation under a ‘false flag,’” pointing to “several clues” that betray the authenticity of the video.
French authorities have designated roughly 1,000 elite anti-terrorist officers to provide a “ring of steel” for the Israeli team amid anti-Israel protests, Reuters reported. Officials happily reported that the first competition involving Israeli athletes, a soccer match between Israel and Mali Wednesday, passed a security test.
Israel’s Shin Bet security agency will work with the French police to keep the area and Games safe for their athletes, but other criminal threats remain major concerns as the games get underway.
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Belgian police on Thursday detained seven people suspected of planning a terrorist attack, with authorities reporting that the individuals may have participated in “the activities of a terrorist group,” including financing and preparing for an attack.
The police explained that “the specific targets of the attack had not yet been determined,” but the threat had risen to the level of requiring police raids on 14 homes across Belgium, according to German outlet DW.
The timing of the raids — just one day before the Games begin — prompted questions of links between the attack and the competition, but Belgian and French authorities did not comment on whether there were any such links.
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The preparation and focus on more international tensions has also allowed other crimes to occur before the Games get underway. French prosecutors earlier this week opened an inquiry after an Australian woman reported that five men allegedly attacked and gang-raped her.
An investigative source told The Telegraph the woman was wandering around the northern Pigalle district in Paris over the weekend in an apparent state of distress and disarray. She then reportedly confronted one of her alleged attackers in a kebab shop, but he fled before police could arrive.
CCTV footage captured the latter confrontation, but Paris prosecutors would not comment on the video while confirming a gang-rape investigation. No arrests have been made, nor have police released any descriptions of the alleged attackers.
