DPA
Paris
France is leaving nothing to chance when it comes to security at the Paris Olympics which open on Friday, and some in the capital may feel reminded of a fortress.
Armed police are patrolling in the streets and manning road blocks, helicopters are up in the air and speed boats on the River Seine to deter and prevent any kind of attack on the July 26-August 11 Games.
The military is also involved, and the highest terror alert level has been in place since March.
Security has been a top issue since Paris was awarded the Games in 2017, and 45,000 security forces will be on duty on Friday alone for the opening ceremony which for the first time doesn’t take place in a stadium but on the Seine and its banks.
Acting Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has named the general terror threat "extremely high.” There have been knife attacks on a police officer and a soldier, and a car driving onto the terrace of a restaurant.
But Darmanin told Le Journal du Dimanche newspaper on Sunday that "as far as we know, there is no specific threat to the security of the Olympic Games.” Paris 2024 head Tony Estanguet told a news conference: "There is a special plan for the opening ceremony and every competition to guarantee security,” adding that keeping people safe was "priority number 1.” Arrests and foiled terror plans There have however been arrests in the run-up around potential terror threats.
In late May, security forces foiled plans by Islamist militants to attack an Olympic football match in the city of Saint-Étienne, and further arrests were announced recently by the interior ministry.
There was also the arrest of a Russian-Ukrainian who injured himself when a self-made explosive detonated.
Intelligence company Recorded Future has said that successful attacks have become more unlikely due to the security measures and the highest terror alert level, but that vigilance is mandatory.
"The supporters of the Islamic State (IS) and Al-Qaeda in Europe almost certainly intend to attack the Olympic Games in Paris,” Recorded Future said.
Big military presence France has made maximum efforts which include a 4,500-strong army camp in Paris and an overall military presence of 15,000 in Paris and the other Olympic sites.
Security forces from other countries are also present, partly to protect their own athletes, such as police vehicles from Qatar and officers from the Arab country on patrol together with French officers.
The French air force is monitoring the air space to be prepared to take action against drones approaching sensitive areas.
AI-bases surveillance Paris is also making use of Artificial Intelligence-based video surveillance in certain areas but without facial recognition.
The aim is to detect people entering non-public or sensitive areas, abandoned baggage, unusually big groups of people, and monitoring people movement in risk areas.
Cyber threats French security forces are also prepared for hacking and cyber attacks designed to disrupt the Games and taint their image.
Recorded Future has identified Russia and Iran as potential actors in such schemes, but also Azerbaijan because France supports Armenia in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Azerbaijan.
There could also be cyber attacks in conectionn with the Ukraine and Gaza wars because activists may want to get the Olympics spotlight, Recorded Future said.
The French cyber security office put together a strategy to counter such attacks two years ago, ranging from prevention to counter- measures in case of such an attack during the Paris Games.French officials have said there is no direct terror threat against the Paris Olympics but a huge security operation is in place to protect the Games from any kind of attack.