French authorities foiled 3 plots targeting the Paris Olympics, counterterrorism prosecutor says

Police are seen near the pitch during the men’s semifinal soccer match between Morocco and Spain at the 2024 Summer Olympics at Marseille Stadium in Marseille, France, in August 2024. | Photo credit: AP

French authorities foiled three plots to attack the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris and other cities hosting the summer events, the national counter-terrorism prosecutor said on Wednesday (September 11, 2024).

Olivier Christon said the plots included plans to attack “Israeli institutions or Israeli representatives in Paris” during the Olympic competition from July 26 to August 11. The prosecutor told broadcaster France Info that “the Israeli team was not specifically targeted.” He gave no further details.

In total, five people, including a minor, were arrested on suspicion of involvement in three foiled plots against the Summer Games, which were held against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war and Russia’s war in Ukraine. The suspects face various terrorism-related charges while they are in pre-trial detention, the prosecutor said.

France was on its highest security alert in the months before the Olympics and Paralympics, which ended last week. During preparations for the Games, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin repeatedly warned that security threats included Islamist extremist groups, violent environmental activists, far-right groups and cyberattacks from Russia or other adversaries.

In May, members of the General Directorate of Internal Security arrested an 18-year-old man from Chechnya suspected of planning to attack Olympic football competitions held in the southern city of Saint-Etienne.

The prosecutor said the planned attack was to target “bar-type establishments in the vicinity of Geoffroy Stadium.” The suspect is accused of planning “violent actions” on behalf of the Islamic State group’s jihadist ideology.

The prosecutor said jihadist threats dominated the foiled plots and that 80% of legal proceedings against suspects involved extremist ideology that still influences France’s youth. He said the Islamic State group continued to “spread propaganda”.

The prosecutor said preventive measures before the Olympics begin include increasing house searches and house arrests. He said police and other security personnel have searched 936 houses so far in 2024, compared to 153 last year.