French authorities said Tuesday that tourists will no longer be able to watch the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics as the nation remains alert for potential security threats during the event.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said Tuesday that a specific security threat has not been identified but that there are multiple potential threats, ranging from attacks from extremist groups and activists to Russian cyberattacks.
Over the past decade, France has been targeted repeatedly by Islamic extremists, and last October the country was placed on the highest alert level for terror attacks after a suspected Islamist extremist entered a school and stabbed a teacher.
Last week, a man stole security plans for the Paris Olympics from a Paris town hall worker. He has since been jailed for seven months for the theft, and France remains on high alert for other security threats.
The attendance policy marks a change to what France had initially promised.
The ceremony was expected to host as many as 600,000 spectators, including many tourists, with most attending free of charge.
Now, 222,000 selected individuals, determined by quotas and selected from those who live and work in towns hosting Olympic events, will be able to watch the ceremony for free.
Interior Ministry officials have said that this decision will help ensure event security and diversify the audience.
Olympics planning executive Lambis Konstantinidis told Agence France-Presse last week that high-risk delegations are being considered for special protections. This includes the United States and Israeli teams.
This year’s opening ceremony will be different from previous years, moving from a stadium to an outdoor environment along the Seine River. This year’s motto is “Games Wide Open.”
The more than 100,000 individuals who purchased tickets will watch the ceremonies from lower embankments, said Darmanin. Everyone else will watch from higher embankments, making a total of 326,000 tickets that will be sold or given to those selected from municipalities.
During the Games, scheduled to start July 26, tens of thousands of police officers and soldiers will be stationed throughout the events to ensure security.
Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
