Thousands of police officers are being deployed in Paris to ensure security at Thursday’s French-Israeli football international, a week after violence in Amsterdam in which Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were attacked.
Paris police chief Laurent Nuñez said 4,000 officers would patrol, 2,500 at the Stade de France in Paris’ northern suburbs and the rest on public transport and in the capital.
In addition, there will be around 1,600 private security guards at the stadium, and an elite anti-terrorist police unit will protect the visiting Israeli team.
“It is a high-risk match [because of] an extremely tense geopolitical context,” Nuñez said.
“We will not tolerate any attempt to disrupt public order.”
The UEFA Nations League match is under fire after violence following last Thursday’s match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Netherlands.
The stadium, which seats 80,000 people, will only be a quarter full. Following advice from the Israeli government, no more than a hundred Israeli fans are expected to travel to Paris, although other Israeli supporters may attend the match.
Politicians across Europe denounced a “return of anti-Semitism” after Israeli fans were chased from the streets of Amsterdam.
According to the city council, Maccabi fans themselves were involved in vandalism, tearing down a Palestinian flag, attacking a taxi and chanting anti-Arab slogans. They were then targeted by “small groups of rioters… on foot, by scooter or car,” the city said in a 12-page report.
The violence between Israel and its neighbors in the Middle East has the potential to spread to Europe.
France, Belgium and the Netherlands all have large Muslim populations of North African descent and live alongside much smaller Jewish populations, who generally identify strongly with Israel.
To show solidarity with Europe’s Jews after Amsterdam, President Emmanuel Macron said he will attend Thursday’s match, which starts at 8:45 p.m.
He will be accompanied by Prime Minister Michel Barnier and former presidents François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy.
Security is tight, but few Israelis are expected to travel to the match [FRANCK FIFE/AFP]
Supporters have been told to expect identity checks ahead of the match. Bars and restaurants in the area must close from noon.
The Stade de France was the scene of a dangerous breakdown of law and order during the 2022 UEFA Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid. However, since then the Rugby World Cup and the Paris Olympics have both taken place there peacefully.
France’s far-left France Unbowed (LFI) party – which sides with the Palestinians and Lebanese in the conflicts with Israel – has called for Thursday’s match to be canceled or at least for President Macron to be barred from running.
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New arrests in Amsterdam due to riots after Maccabi match
“We do not want our head of state to honor a country that commits genocide,” said LFI delegate David Guiraud. Israel has denied the accusations of genocide as baseless and grossly distorted.
But Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said it was out of the question to cancel or move the match. “France gives no space to those who sow hatred,” he said.
France and Israel are in the same group in the UEFA competition, alongside Italy and Belgium. In their first leg – played in Budapest – France defeated Israel 4-1.
Pre-match tensions were already on display after a pro-Israel ‘gala’ event was given the green light in Paris on Wednesday evening, where far-right Israeli minister Bezalel Smotrich was expected to attend at one point – although that happened later. thought his “presence” would be via video link.
Pro-Palestinian protesters have tried to get Thursday’s UEFA Nations League match canceled [Luc Auffret/Anadolu]
Pro-Palestinian and anti-racist organizations planned demonstrations in the capital to coincide with the event.
Relations between Macron and Benjamin Netanyahu have come under serious strain in recent weeks, after Macron accused the Israeli prime minister of “spreading barbarism” in Gaza and Lebanon.
French Jews were also angry when Macron said Netanyahu should accept United Nations calls for a ceasefire because “his country itself was created by a decision of the UN.” This was interpreted in Israel as an insult to Jews who had lost their lives in their country’s war of independence.
France, in turn, was angry when two French officials were briefly detained by Israeli authorities at a holy site in French-controlled East Jerusalem.
Macron is described as pursuing a zigzag movement in his approach to the Middle East, as in many other areas, moving inconsistently between outspoken statements of support for Israel and then for its Arab neighbors.
