Olympics: Israel’s opening soccer match against Mali to test Paris 2024 security

France will deploy hundreds of police officers to secure Israel’s opening Olympic soccer match against Mali on Wednesday, a first security test ahead of the Games’ official opening ceremony.

The Paris 2024 Summer Games take place amid pronounced security concerns and heightened geopolitical tensions, including over Israel’s war in Gaza. Israeli competitors will be escorted by elite tactical units to and from events and given 24-hour protection throughout the Olympics, officials say.

“The protection systems for the Israeli delegation, their teams, the referees, the members of the Olympic committee, are all in place,” Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told Le Parisien newspaper on Tuesday.

Darmanin said on Wednesday 1,000 security personnel would be deployed.

That is equivalent to the numbers in April for the UEFA Champions League match between Paris St Germain and Barcelona that was also held at the Parc des Princes in western Paris.

Israel’s own internal security service, Shin Bet, will help with security at the game, which Darmanin is due to attend with Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

Israel’s budget for protecting its athletes and wider delegation had increased substantially compared with the Tokyo Games in 2021, an Israeli official said.

The Palestinian Olympic Committee this week called for Israel to be excluded from the Games in an open letter to International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach. The letter accused Israel of breaching the traditional Olympic truce, with continued military action in Gaza.

French far-left lawmakers have urged protests against Israel’s participation in the Games.

In response to the boycott calls, Israel Olympic Committee President Yael Arad told reporters at a news conference before flying to France that it was a “victory” that the 88 athletes had made it to the Olympics.

At a small rally in Paris late on Tuesday, pro-Palestinian protesters chanted “Free, free Palestine.”

“Israel should be expelled because it is systematically violating rights and international laws,” said protester Elena Guerra.

Israel has dismissed allegations of war crimes in Gaza and says its military campaign is justified by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. It also says settlements in occupied Palestinian territories are not occupied in legal terms because they are on disputed lands.

‘Great atmosphere’

The Israel-Mali match will also offer a first snapshot of how other competitors and the wider public respond to Israeli participation in the games.

The Paris 2024 Games take place five decades after Palestinian militants killed 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics.

At their training headquarters in Croissy, some 20 kilometers west of Paris, the Israeli players on Tuesday sought to come across as relaxed, but there was some tension in the air.

Media minders yelled “only football” when reporters attempted to ask questions about the political backdrop.

When asked about security, three of the players repeated that they were comfortable, prepared and just pleased to be in Paris.

“We came here to win and achieve things with this team and are very excited,” Omri Gandelman, a midfielder who plays for Belgian side Gent, told reporters. “We have a job to do.”

The team coach, who oversaw the soccer squad’s first Olympic qualification since 1976, said he had no concerns over the match-night atmosphere.

“It will be a great atmosphere and I’m sure we will have a lot of supporters,” Guy Luzon said. “We don’t care what happens around us.”

As a former French colony, there is a large Malian diaspora in France and irrespective of whether there is hostility towards Israel or not, they are likely to come out in force as they did in a pre-tournament friendly on the outskirts of Paris earlier this week.

Before its military campaign in Gaza, Israel had sought closer ties in Africa. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met senior Malian officials in 2019, hoping to normalize relations.

Mali, a mainly Muslim state, broke off ties with Israel in 1973 after the Yom Kippur war. The Malian government, which took power through a coup in 2021, has repeatedly expressed support to the Palestinians and condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza.

Mali has concerns of its own on the field. Several key players pulled out ahead of the Olympics, denouncing the mismanagement of the Malian soccer federation.