Amid Attack On Trump, Unprecedented Security For Paris Olympics

ANALYSIS – Following the deadly, nearly successful assassination attempt on America’s former and, likely soon-to-be, next president, Donald Trump, the threat of violence and terrorism is at an all-time high.

Not just in the United States but in Europe as well.

With 25 competition venues in the Paris region and 13 in the capital alone, organizers have initiated Opération Sentinelle (Operation Sentinel) to provide “protective bubbles” around all Olympic sites.

This massive security operation involves thousands of army troops. French soldiers have been patrolling in Paris since a spate of terrorist attacks in 2015 killed 130 people and injured more than 350.

“It’s completely logical for the armed forces to contribute” to Olympic security, said Chief of Defense Staff General Thierry Burkhard.

“Given that it’s an exceptional event, there can be an exceptional contribution. The real question for me is planning ahead… given that some things are likely to happen more or less at the last minute,” Burkhard added.

General Burkhard currently plans to have at least 15,000 troops to protect transport hubs and major routes to the Games. This, while 30,000 police cover the approaches to Olympic sites each day. Private security firms will manage access and the space inside the cordons.

However, referring to 20,000 civilian staff needed to operate Olympic security, one senior civil servant told AFP that the Games’ organizing committee “will never manage to recruit the staff they need from private security.”

During the 2012 London Olympics, the British government had to deploy 3,000 additional troops days before the Games started as private security company G4S failed to provide enough private security guards.

This could be a major gap in the French security plan.

According to the Crisis24 outlet belonging to global security company Garda:

French authorities are implementing a comprehensive security plan involving additional police, military personnel, and civilian security staff across Olympic venues, athletes’ villages, media hubs, and other key locations. This plan includes heightened security at tourist landmarks and sensitive sites. Road closures and security zones have been established to manage the increased demand for safety and accessibility.

 “Strategic threats” noted by Garda are:

Key security threats identified include terrorism, cyber threats, health risks, and drone activity. Civil unrest, crime, and environmental risks are also of concern. The political climate in France is tense, with President Macron dissolving the National Assembly and snap elections increasing political activism and anti-far-right rallies. The global situation, particularly conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, adds to the complexity with accusations of Russian-backed cyber-attacks against French interests.

The top five security concerns facing Paris, according to Garda, are terrorism, cybersecurity, crime and civil unrest.

Garda notes that “crime rates in Paris are relatively low, but a temporary increase in petty theft and opportunistic crimes is expected during the Games.” Still, a French soldier was stabbed on patrol in Paris ahead of the Olympics.

The soldier was hospitalized, but was not in life-threatening condition, authorities said. French authorities said terrorism is not suspected as a motive for the attack.

Beyond that, cybersecurity is a major focus for the games.

With threats ranging from espionage and disruptive operations to financially motivated attacks and misinformation campaigns by cybercriminals and state-sponsored actors, enhanced measures are being implemented to protect information and networks.

Of the five threats identified by Garda, I would agree that the threat of lone-wolf terrorist attacks is a significant concern. This is why the primary focus of Opération Sentinelle is counterterrorism. Individuals planning attacks have already been swept up in arrests recently highlighting the high terror risk.

But this threat also requires coordinating closely with international partners.

Finally, Garda adds, industrial action by labor unions, although not guaranteed, is common in Paris and poses a potential disruption risk. Several unions have submitted strike warnings, but strikes will depend on member support.

Then there is the other type of civil unrest – “authorities expect demonstrations related to political issues, social causes, and the Olympics themselves.”

The city has designated specific areas for these protests to minimize disruption. Only time will tell if protesters behave and stay in their designated protest zones.

Meanwhile, let’s all hope and pray nothing happens, including any attack similar to that against Donald Trump.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

READ NEXT: Judge Shields Woke Murderer From Scrutiny