France unveils extensive security measures for Summer Paralympic Games

PARIS: French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has unveiled the extensive security measures that will be implemented to ensure the safety of the Summer Paralympic Games in Paris, which will be held from August 28th to September 8th. This announcement was made during a press conference attended by Darmanin, alongside Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, the French Minister of Sports, Olympics, and Paralympics, and Tony Estanguet, President of the Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Darmanin outlined that the security plan includes the deployment of 15,000 police officers and gendarmes to secure the opening ceremony in the Concorde area and along the Champs-Élysées, with over 25,000 security personnel on duty daily throughout the competitions. He added that the security operation will be further strengthened by 300 members of special intervention forces, including GIGN, BRI, and RAID, along with more than 10,000 private security personnel. The French Interior Minister emphasised that the Paralympic torch will receive heightened protection from a dedicated team of 18 to 30 police and gendarmerie officers, supported by an anti-drone system, 12 motorcyclists, GIGN rapid intervention squad members, and a mobile force unit of 150 personnel. Source: Emirates News Agency