A PARADE of athletes or a procession using boats at the opening ceremony of the Olympics could be used by delegations to show solidarity with the Palestinian struggle.
The opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics in Paris will take place on Friday (26/7) local time or Saturday (27/7) early morning WIB.
Some 90 boats carrying 10,500 athletes and officials, including a delegation from Israel, will sail in a convoy along the Seine River past iconic Parisian buildings. The Games will be the first to be held outside a stadium.
Pro-Palestinian organizers said there was discussion about showing solidarity with Palestine at the opening ceremony.
A source quoted The Guardian said there were acts of solidarity involving some delegates or athletes who would raise Palestinian flags or wear messages on their clothing as part of their stance against Israel’s involvement in the 2024 Olympics.
A spokesman for Team Israel said their athletes would take part in a convoy down the river but he declined to comment on the number who would board the boats for the 6-kilometer journey.
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Stephanie Adam, an activist with the Palestinian Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel Campaign, said the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and host country France wanted to hide dissent, including through repressive and underhanded tactics against Israel’s presence at the Games.
“We call on participating delegations to join the call for a ceasefire now and stop Israel’s genocide of Gaza. We urge Olympic athletes to use their platforms to defend Palestinian rights,” he said.
Bruno Le Ray, Director of Games Security, said security would be tightened at the opening ceremony with 45,000 police and 2,000 security guards involved.
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Le Ray said he was satisfied with the security during the first few days of the match that had already started.
“The first lesson we can take from this is that in terms of safety and security we have had no incidents anywhere, at football matches, although some encounters are considered a little more sensitive, in particular the match between Israel and Mali.”
Several threats of violence against Israeli athletes have emerged in the run-up to the games. Israel’s foreign minister, Israel Katz, sent a letter to his French counterpart, Stephane Sejourne, warning of new threats to attack Israeli delegates.
“There are those who seek to undermine the celebratory nature of this joyful event,” Katz wrote.
The 88 Israeli athletes are under tight surveillance and security around the clock from French security officials, and are also guarded by officials from the intelligence agency. (Theguardian/P-5)
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