French police have started an investigation after three Israeli athletes competing at the Paris Olympics received death threats.
The threats were revealed by interior minister Gerald Darmanin, with the national anti-online hate body leading the investigation.
Israeli athletes at the Olympics are being monitored on a 24-hour basis, while elite tactical units have been tasked with escorting competitors to and from events.
The Pairs prosecutors’ office has also revealed its anti-cybercrime officers are probing the release of competitors’ personal data and trying to have it removed.
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It comes after the Israeli national anthem was booed during last week’s football match between Israel and Mali’s men at the Parc des Princes.
The fixtures was deemed ‘high risk’, but it ultimately went ahead without any major problems.
However, prosecutors said they were investigating possible antisemitic hate crimes from Israel’s 4-2 defeat against Paraguay.
A banner reading ‘Genocide Olympics’ was unveiled in the team’s next game over the weekend.
It’s reported around 50 ‘ultra’ like fans could be heard chanting anti-Israel messages, including ‘Israel Killer’ and ‘Israel is killing Palestine’s children’.
Israeli fans were then heard responding with chants of ‘Free the hostages’ – a reference to the October 7th attack.
In a statement to Sky News, Paris 2024 organisers said: “During the men’s football match between Israel and Paraguay at the Parc des Princes on 27 July, a banner bearing a political message was displayed and anti-Semitic gestures were made.
“Paris 2024 strongly condemns these acts. A complaint has been lodged by Paris 2024, which is at the disposal of the authorities to assist with the investigation.”
Security threats to Israeli athletes dominated the build-up to the Paris Games, with Israel’s National Cyber Directorate having said Iranian hackers were creating social media channels to publish personal information about members of its delegation.
Similarly, the Israeli foreign minister sent a warning to his French counterpart about the threat of Iranian-backed plots to target athletes and tourists from the Middle Eastern nation – something Iran were quick to refute.
In a statement released last week, the Iranian mission to the United Nations said: “Terrorist acts have no place in the principles of resistance groups; lies and deceit cannot switch the roles of the plaintiff and the accused.”
