Israel on Thursday warned France about potential threats from Iran-backed groups against Israeli athletes and tourists in Paris during the Olympic Games.
“There are those who wish to harm the celebration of this joyous occasion,” Foreign Minister Israel Katz told his French counterpart in a letter, copies of which were released to the media.
“We currently have an assessment of potential threats from Iranian terrorist affiliates and other terrorist organizations that aim to carry out terrorist attacks against members of the Israeli delegation and Israeli tourists during the Olympics.”
France has launched a massive security operation to make the Olympics safe. Apart from the regular police, around 18,000 French soldiers have been deployed to protect the games.
All Israeli athletes taking part in the Paris Games, which officially begin on Friday, will be provided with personal protection by elite French police around the clock, both inside the Olympic Village and when leaving the complex in northern Paris.
Addressing the US Congress on Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for a global coalition against the Iranian “axis of terrorism”.
He argued that the United States and Israel should “stand together” against Iran and its allies.
Iran praised Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7 but said it was not involved.
The attack has escalated tensions in the war, and has involved Iran-backed armed groups in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen.
Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Lebanon’s Hezbollah group and former Iran-backed paramilitaries in the Iraqi armed forces are part of the Tehran-aligned “axis of resistance” that backs Hamas against Israel and its allies.
Iran has reiterated its support for these groups, but stressed that they are independent in their decision-making and actions.
On April 13–14, Iran launched an unprecedented drone and missile attack on Israel, just days after Israel carried out an airstrike on Iran’s consulate in Damascus that killed seven Revolutionary Guards soldiers, including two generals.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
