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FRANCE and Israel are set to clash in a crunch Nations League tie in just hours amid growing fears of a night of anti-Semitic violence.
Over 6,500 special forces and gun-touting gendarmes are being readied for tonight’s game with pictures showing horse mounted officers and cop vans already blocking off routes in Paris.
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Thousands of gun-touting gendarmes are readied up outside the Stade de FranceAP
APA number of extensive security measures already in place as Paris gears up for the international fixture.
Paris‘ police chief has already labelled it as a “high-risk event” with officials announcing there will be at least one cop per three football fans in the capital tonight.
Chief Laurent Nuñez said today that 4,000 officers will be on patrol around the game with 2,500 inside the Stade de France and the rest around the capital.
This protective double ring of steel will also be flagged by Israeli security forces, including agents from the Mossad intelligence agency.
Another few hundred cops will be deployed across transport networks leading to Paris’ northern suburbs.
Fears of violence have drastically ramped up in recent days after thousands marched through the streets of Paris in protest.
Footage shows Palestine flags being waved as anti-Israeli marchers voiced their anger towards a controversial far-right gala taking place in the capital.
It even promoted anti-demonstrations which led to chaos for the cops.
Just a week ago, disturbing footage also showed Israeli football fans being chased through the streets of Amsterdam by an anti-Semitic mob.
Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters were ambushed by masked rioters in the Dutch city as they left the Johan Cruyff stadium last Thursday.
This has prompted international concerns over the safety of Jewish fans particularly those watching Israeli-based teams.
Organisers told The Sun that they are even struggling to sell tickets due to issues around Israel with the Middle Eastern conflict – with less than 20,000 seats reserved so far out of an 80,000 capacity.
The Israeli government even told travelling supporters to “categorically avoid attending” the France match.
Just 100 tickets have been sold for the away side with many fearing a night of chaos could ensue.
And events in the Netherlands have only ramped up the need for special measures further in wake of rising anti-Semitic hate in Europe.
One of these precautions saw the Israel team being confined to their undisclosed hotel in the Val d’Oise region to the north of the capital.
Constant armed guards were at the base and accompanied the players and staff to their training site on Tuesday.
Authorities demanded the location be kept under wraps and all media activities were cancelled.
Manager Ran Ben Shimon has revealed to the press that he and the team feel safe despite the major precautions in place.
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AFP
The team and staff are expected to be under constant police supervision as they make their way to the stadium later on today.
Bars and restaurants in the area have also been told to close from the early afternoon to avoid any disruption.
Many called on the French government to move the match away from Paris – even before the issues in Amsterdam kicked off.
Experts said the panic and potential issues of rival fans and the public clashing wasn’t worth the international game.
Swaths of opposition sides have decided to move their games against Israel to neutral venues since the Middle Eastern conflict reached boiling point.
After playing France away in Paris, the team will travel to play against Belgium on Sunday.
This match has already faced intense scrutiny with it being moved to a neutral venue in Hungary due to safety fears.
France’s elite RAID tactical unit are believed to be the first line of defence at the game and have been deployed across the nation following the violence in the Netherlands.
Police chief Nuñez said security at the game was of extreme concern for the authorities.
He said: “There’s a context, tensions that make that match a high-risk event for us.
“There will be an anti-terrorist security perimeter around the stadium.”
RAID – which stands for Search, Assistance, Intervenion, Deterrence – will be in the stadium, he confirmed.
The RAID was one of the first special forces units rushed to the scene when ISIS suicide bombers attacked Paris in November 2015.
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The Mega Agency
RexTerrorist thugs killed 130 people on a single night with chilling eruptions even being heard from the Stade de France on the harrowing night.
French President Emmanuel Macron and his prime minister, Michel Barnier, will also attend the match.
Macron and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu have been at logger heads in recent months over the Middle East.
Macron accused the PM of “spreading barbarism” across Gaza and Lebanon with his continued assaults on Hamas and Hezbollah.
But the president spoke on the issues around the game tonight as he told BFM TV: “We will not give in to antisemitism, anywhere.
” And violence, including in the French Republic, will never prevail, nor will intimidation.”
France has already answered calls for tightened security around Israeli athletes after the 2024 Paris Olympics earlier this year.
They deployed a widely successful “ring of steel” around the Games to ensure safety after several declarations of violence from terror group ISIS and anti-Israel parties.
It became the most guarded Games ever with over 60,000 cops and soldiers, drones, helicopters and a huge increase in AI surveillance all deployed.
The rise of antisemitism in Europe
Since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, antisemitic violence has surged globally.
It has been fuelled by heightened geopolitical tensions and polarising public discourse around the war.
This escalation is marked by an alarming rise in physical attacks, threats, and hate speech targeting Jewish communities.
In Europe, reports of antisemitism have spiked, with attacks on synagogues, Jewish schools, and individuals intensifying.
Countries like Germany and France have seen notable incidents of physical violence and vandalism.
In Germany, synagogues were firebombed, and Jewish youth sports teams have reported attacks, reflecting a growing climate of fear.
Public spaces associated with Jewish identity, including schools and cemeteries, have also required heightened police protection.
Across this week a number of pro-Palestinian marches and counter demonstrations have taken place in Paris.
Over 10,000 took to the streets on Wednesday to protest against a controversial pro-Israel gala.
The “Israel is Forever” gala was originally set to be attended by Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich but he has since pulled out and agreed to speak over video call.
Several controversial far-Right figures also showed – making life difficult for patrolling cops.
An open letter by seven civil rights groups to the French media said allowing the gala to go ahead was an “insult to international law“.
Earlier this month, a Jewish football team was placed under police protection after it was “attacked” by a knife-wielding pro-Palestinian mob in Berlin.
Teens from Makkabi Berlin’s youth team claim they were “hunted down” by a group of Arab youngsters after a game against local rivals.
One player’s dad claimed that his son was “deeply shaken” when he came back home from the game.
The boy was allegedly spat at and later harassed by a mob of kids and adults who followed the squad off the pitch with sticks and knives.
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RAID officers will join 6,000 cops to help protect Paris after the police chief labelled the game as a ‘high-risk event’
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