FM says ‘Iranian terrorist proxies’ might attack Israeli athletes, tourists in Paris
Katz thanks France for ‘unprecedented’ measures to protect delegation to Olympics; hackers say they posted personal info of athletes, claiming they are covert IDF agents
Foreign Minister Israel Katz sent a letter to his French counterpart Stéphane Séjourné on Thursday, warning him of an Iranian-backed plot to attack Israeli tourists and athletes at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“There are those who seek to undermine the celebratory nature of this joyous event,” wrote Katz. “We currently have assessments regarding the potential threat posed by Iranian terrorist proxies and other terrorist organizations.”
The foreign minister thanked France for its “unprecedented” effort to protect Israeli athletes and for rebuffing calls to ban the delegation from participating in the Olympics. He also thanked Séjourné personally for offering to host a memorial for the 11 Israeli athletes massacred at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
In his letter, Katz also singled out Séjourné and French President Emmanuel Macron for praise for their “unequivocal condemnation of the incitement” against the Israeli delegation.
Meanwhile, Channel 12 reported Thursday that a group of anti-Israel hackers calling themselves “Zeus” claimed to have published personal information about Israeli athletes and pictures from their military service.
According to the report, Israel’s National Cyber Directorate said that Iran was behind the social media campaign, which aims to scare members of the Israeli delegation to the Paris Olympics.
The hackers reportedly opened social media profiles impersonating a French organization called GUD, a far-right students’ union, and used the encrypted chat application Telegram to post Israeli athletes’ bank account information, home addresses and ID numbers.
The group also published what it said were pictures of the athletes during their service in the IDF, claiming that the army had sent undercover representatives to the Games, and sent threatening messages.
Channel 12 quoted Israel’s cyber defense chief Gaby Portnoy as saying that Iran was “taking advantage of an apolitical international sports competition to promote digital terrorist activity against Israel and its right to participate in these competitions.”
The report, along with Katz’s letter to Séjourné, came a day after the National Security Council issued safety guidelines to Israelis traveling to the Olympics, cautioning that Iran-backed terror organizations “are seeking to carry out attacks on Israeli/Jewish targets around the Olympics.” The NSC also noted the recent arrests of French teens associated with Islamic State, an adversary of Iran.
The Olympics officially begin Friday and will last until September 8, the end of the Paralympic Games.
French Jewish organizations were outraged on Sunday after Thomas Portes, a lawmaker of the hard-left La France Insoumise party, said that “Israeli athletes are not welcome at the Olympic Games in Paris” amid the war in Gaza. Several LFI members seconded Portes’ message.
Séjourné on Monday insisted that “the Israeli delegation is welcome in France,” and criticized Portes for his “irresponsible and dangerous” comment. Katz praised Séjourné stance on X, formerly Twitter, noting Israel and France’s “shared values of democracy, fraternity and peace.”
I would like to thank my French counterpart, @steph_sejourne, for his welcome message to the Israeli delegation at the @Paris2024 Olympic Games, and for his assurance regarding the safety of our athletes.
In the context of threats and calls for boycott, this symbolic gesture is… https://t.co/AegA7MDRGm
— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) July 22, 2024
“We are determined to see our athletes proudly represent the State of Israel and believe we can count on France to ensure their security,” wrote Katz.
The 88 Israeli Olympians have round-the-clock protection from French security services and are also being guarded by Shin Bet officials, amid a spate of threats to the delegation and the proceedings.
Paris Police chief Laurent Nunez said in June that “Islamist terrorism” was law enforcement’s “main concern” in securing the Games.
“The terrorist threat remains just as important as the protest threat posed by radical environmental groups, the ultra-left, and the pro-Palestinian movement,” Nunez said. He cited the May arrest of an 18-year-old Chechen man in Saint-Etienne for allegedly planning an attack on the city’s soccer stadium during the Olympics, in the name of Islamic State.
Some 1,000 French police officers were deployed as Israel and Mali kicked off the Olympic soccer games on Wednesday night. Despite jeers from the audience, the players exchanged friendly greetings and there were no major security issues.
Also on Wednesday, President Isaac Herzog was ordered to stay on board his plane for 40 minutes after landing in Paris due to a security threat. A suspicious person had reportedly been spotted on a nearby rooftop.
Amy Spiro contributed to this report.
