Heavy security forces escorted Israeli athletes heading to the Paris Olympic Village as pro-Palestinian protests erupted across the French capital on Friday, CNN reported. French officials, acknowledging the elevated risk faced by Israeli competitors and attacks against them in past games, said that they had insisted on Israel’s competitors receiving 24/7 protection.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, in a statement translated by CNN on Friday, said that he “proposed to the president of the republic that the Israeli delegation be fully protected by the French police 24 hours a day.”
France has called in international police to help patrol the capital amid heightened concerns over terrorism. Several arrests have already been made against individuals planning an attack on the games.
Additionally, Israel's delegation has already received death threats ahead of the games.
“We took this decision because the Israeli athletes, and we’ve known this since the Munich games, of course, but more recently again, are particularly targeted by attacks,” Darmanin explained.
Some 45,000 police and thousands of soldiers have been deployed in a huge security operation in Paris for the opening show. Police imposed a security zone along the river, erecting metal barriers to fence off neighborhoods and requiring authorization - passes with QR codes - to enter.
"There are more cops than people, I don't feel in danger," said Jean Landerretche, a 19-year-old biochemistry student from Paris.
"I want the world to see how beautiful this city is," said Landerretche, who said he was excited to attend the opening ceremony, the first to take place outside a stadium.
Learning from past mistakes
In the 1972 Olympic games in Germany, Palestinian terrorists from ‘Black September’ invaded the Israeli dormitory, where they shot some of the athletes and took others hostage. Despite the hostage crisis, the games continued. German police attempted a failed hostage rescue, and the terrorists slaughtered the hostages and a German police officer.
A surviving Israeli olympian, Esther Roth-Shachamorov, told CNN of traveling back to Israel along with the bodies of her teammates.
“I kept thinking, what’s going on here?” she explained, describing her thought process during her flight back.
Since October 7, when Hamas launched attacks on southern Israel and murdered over 1200 people, Israeli intelligence services like Mossad and the Shin Bet thwarted an increased number of attacks planned against Israelis and Jews abroad.
During the Malmo Eurovision Song Contest this year, significant effort was placed to ensure the safety of Israel’s participant, as violent protests raged outside.
Eden Golan, who performed on behalf of Israel after a battle over her song choice, revealed that for much of her time in Sweden, she wore a disguise to ensure her safety.
One athlete, addressing the protests that erupted over their arrival, told CNN that the response to their presence was “something we’re used to, and I am feeling really safe. My part is to connect everyone by sports.”