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SCMP Sport

Reuters

Israeli athletes will receive 24-hour protection during the Paris Olympics, France’s interior minister said on Monday, amid email threats of a repeat of the attack at the 1972 Games in Munich that left 12 people dead.
A French far-left lawmaker also fanned the flames, saying the country’s delegation was not welcome and calling for protests against its inclusion.
The Games begin this Friday amid pronounced security concerns at a time of heightened geopolitical tensions over the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
Israel’s war against Hamas that has devastated Gaza has become a lightning rod among France’s far left, with some critics accusing pro-Palestinian members of antisemitism.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said in a television interview Israeli athletes would be protected around the clock during the Games, 52 years after Munich, in which 11 Israelis and a German police officer, were killed by Palestinian militants.

According to The Times of Israel, 15 athletes were sent emails by “the People’s Defence Organisation”, which does not exist, threatening to “harm any Israeli presence at the Olympics”.
The message said the organisation intended “to repeat the events of Munich 1972”, a threat that was largely dismissed by officials.
“We are obviously taking this seriously and not looking on it lightly, but we are also not getting overexcited,” said Yael Arad, the Israel Olympic Committee chairwoman.
On Monday, French foreign minister Stephane Sejourne told his Israeli counterpart they were “ensuring the security of the Israeli delegation”.
At a pro-Gaza rally on Saturday, far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party lawmaker Thomas Portes was filmed saying Israel’s Olympic athletes were not welcome in France, and there should be protests against their taking part in the Games.
“We are a few days away from an international event which will be held in Paris, which is the Olympic Games. And I am here to say that no, the Israeli delegation is not welcome in Paris. Israeli athletes are not welcome at the Olympic Games in Paris,” he said to applause, according to images posted on social media.
Portes did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Israeli embassy declined to comment.
Some LFI lawmakers offered a partial defence of Portes’ comments. Manuel Bompard, a senior party official and lawmaker, wrote on X that he supported Portes “in the face of the wave of hatred he is experiencing”.
He wrote: “Faced with repeated violations of international law by the Israeli government, it is legitimate to ask that its athletes compete under a neutral banner in the Olympic Games.”
In a sign of the complex security issues surrounding the Israeli delegation, a memorial ceremony for the Israeli athletes killed in the 1972 attack has been moved from outside Paris’ City Hall to the Israeli embassy.
“The request from the French authorities to move the ceremony to the embassy from City Hall was received due to the fact that it was destined to be held in the restricted security area prior to the Olympic Games,” the embassy said in a statement.
The Games kick off with an ambitious opening ceremony along the Seine with athletes paraded in barges down the river. Participation is optional, however, and Israeli officials have declined to say whether Israel’s athletes will take part.


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Paris 2024 Olympic Games

Israeli Olympics team to get 24-hour guard amid Gaza tensions and Munich repeat threat

French soldiers patrol near the Eiffel Tower ahead of the Paris Olympics. Photo: AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin listen to Paris police Prefect Laurent Nunez at the Olympic Village police station. Photo: Reuters

Ukraine, Gaza, US-China: a guide to the global tensions hanging over the Paris Olympics

Protestors walk past the headquarters of International Olympic Committee urging against the return to competition of Russian athletes to compete under a neutral flag. Photo: AFP

Ukrainian supporters hold banners which one reads, “No war criminals at the Olympic Games 2024” in Paris. Photo: AP

Thousands of displaced Palestinians in Gaza City, Gaza Stri are sheltering at the Yarmouk Sports Stadium, once Gaza’s biggest football arena. Photo: AP

President Joe Biden (right) and Chinese President Xi Jinping walk together after a meeting in 2023. Photo: TNS

Chinese Taipei emblem used for the Paris Olympics is different to the official Taiwanese flag. Photo: X/TaiwanNewsEN

Paris Olympics: Ukrainians hoping to provide welcome distraction during Russia conflict

Yaroslava Mahuchikh is among the medal hopefuls representing war-torn Ukraine at the Paris Olympics. Photo: AP

Ukraine’s Zhan Beleniuk celebrates on the podium during the medal ceremony for the men’s 87kg Greco-Roman wrestling at the Tokyo Olympics. Photo: AP

Yaroslava Mahuchikh in action during the women’s high jump at a Diamond League Athletics meet in Paris. Photo: AP

Mykhailo Romanchuk celebrates his silver medal in men’s 1,500m freestyle at the European Aquatics Championships in Belgrade. Photo: AP

Ukrainian judoka Daria Bilodid speaks to media at the presentation of the Olympic outfit ahead of Paris Olympic Games. Photo: AFP

Sport

Paris Olympics 2024

Email from ‘People’s Defence Organisation’ threatens repeat of 1972 Games attack in which 11 Israelis and 1 German police officer died.


French interior minister says delegation will receive round-the-clock protection, as email from ‘People’s Defence Organisation’ threatens repeat of 1972 Games attack in which 11 athletes died.


Israel-Gaza war