French authorities increase security operations at Parc des Princes ahead of Israel football match
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Anti-terrorism police will form part of strengthened security at Paris' Parc des Princes ahead of the Olympic football tournament group match between Israel and West African nation Mali on Thursday morning (AEST).
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach has repeatedly expressed his "full confidence" in French authorities to keep Israeli athletes safe with the war ongoing in Gaza posing the risk of social unrest.
The escalated security operations follow a surge in anti-Israel actions targeting the Israeli Olympic team in Paris.
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French police officers patrol the Eiffel Tower ahead of Paris 2024. Michael Kappeler/picture alliance via Getty Images
With "fake threats" being directed at Israeli athletes, Bach reiterated that French authorities and the Olympics' security agency were countering risks.
"With regard to the security of the Israeli athletes, we have full confidence in the French authorities," he said on Tuesday night.
"The French authorities are responsible for security. They are working very meticulously, they were working very professionally.
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"The Israeli athletes since 1972 have always taken their own additional security measures. They feel comfortable with this situation, as we know from contact with them."
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At the Munich 1972 Olympic Games, 11 Israeli athletes and a German policeman were taken hostage and murdered by the Palestinian terror group known as "Black September".
It has been revealed that the 88-strong Israeli team is under 24-hour guard during the two weeks of the Games.
While peaceful Palestinian protests have been staged in Paris in the lead-up to the Games without incident, the match between Israel and Mali — a former French colony — is expected to be the scene of mass protests and pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
The threat of disruptions to the match is also heightened with Israel's president Isaac Herzog reportedly set to attend.
According to the British Telegraph, members of France's elite BRI Search and Intervention Brigade will join soldiers, police and gendarmes in forming a "ring of steel" around the Parc des Princes. Drones will also be used to secure a perimeter around the ground.
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Palestinian protesters gather during a demonstration in Paris. Ibrahim Ezzat/Anadolu via Getty Images
The additional security follows debate in French parliament about whether Israeli athletes should be allowed to compete in Paris.
The Palestinian Olympic Committee has also written to Bach, urging the IOC to bar Israel from competing in the Games on account of disregard for the Olympic truce — a long-standing tradition of observing ceasefire during an Olympic Games.
In its letter, the Palestinian delegation accused members of the Israeli Olympic Committee of engaging in "racist anti-Palestinian, anti-Arab and Islamophobic campaigns as well as encouraging war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide".
Iran has also publicly called for the team to be excluded from the Games to prevent the glorification of war crimes.
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However, Bach rejected the sentiment as war being waged between Hamas and Israel's government, not its athletes.
"The more people try to politicise the Games and the higher the tensions are, the more important is the message of the Games to try to unite and not to contribute to even more division," he said.
"We are here to accomplish our mission to get the athletes together and to welcome all the athletes who are respecting the rules and then to have peaceful competition."
