A Chechen preparing a terrorist attack at the upcoming Olympics is detained in France
Suspect arrested and charged with links to ISIS militants
French law enforcement officials have detained an 18-year-old Chechen man suspected of preparing an attack on a football stadium during the Olympic Games in Paris.
Source. This was reportedby the AFP agency with reference to the Ministry of the Interior.
The suspect was detained in the city of Saint-Etienne in the southeast of the country. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, this is the first prevention of an attack on the Olympic Games.
The man is suspected of actively preparing an attack on the Joffroy Guichard Stadium in Saint-Etienne during the football matches that will take place there.
Reuters reports that the suspect has been arrested. He has been charged with links to Islamic State (ISIS) militants and organising a terrorist community.
‘He wanted to attack the audience, as well as the security forces, and die a martyr's death. The suspect was inspired by Islamist ideology,’ said French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin.
French law enforcement is on high alert as the Olympic Games are less than two months away.
At the end of March, French intelligence said it was considering cancelling the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games due to the threat of terrorist attacks, which increased after the tragedy in Moscow's Crocus City Hall.
French intelligence fears the return of mass terrorism using military weapons or vehicles.
‘The current format of the Seine athletes’ parade creates too many risks to be left as it is. We have to move on to plan B,’ an intelligence source told reporters.
The Summer Olympics will take place in the French capital from 26 July to 11 August 2024. According to the original plan, the opening ceremony is to take place on the Seine River instead of a traditional stadium. More than 160 boats will take the delegations of the participating teams past the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower. About 600,000 people will watch the ceremony.
Background. As we wrote, French President Emmanuel Macron has ‘no doubt’ that the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris could be the target of malicious actions by Russia, including information attacks.
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