Israeli athletes will receive 24-hour protection during the Paris Olympics, France’s interior minister says, after a far-left lawmaker claimed Israel’s delegation was not welcome and called for protests against their participation. The Games begin on Friday amid pronounced security concerns at a time of heightened geopolitical tensions over the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
At a pro-Gaza rally on Saturday, far-left France Unbowed party lawmaker Thomas Portes was filmed saying Israel’s Olympic athletes were not welcome in France, and that there should be protests against their taking part in the Games. “We are a few days away from an international event which will be held in Paris, which is the Olympic Games. And I am here to say that no, the Israeli delegation is not welcome in Paris.