Russian Man Arrested In Paris Over Alleged Plot To 'Destabilize' Olympics

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PARIS (AP) — French authorities person foiled respective land to disrupt nan 2024 Olympics, including arresting a Russian man successful 1 of them, officials said Wednesday, conscionable days earlier nan opening ceremonial of nan Summer Games successful Paris.

France has been connected precocious alert complete nan past fewer weeks arsenic preparations to big nan Olympics deed nan last stretch.

The Games officially footwear disconnected pinch a lavish and high-security opening ceremonial connected nan River Seine connected Friday.

Paris prosecutors said Wednesday that they had arrested a 40-year-old Russian man Tuesday astatine his Paris flat connected suspicion of readying to “destabilize nan Olympic Games.”

He was charged pinch “conducting intelligence activity connected behest of a overseas power” pinch an purpose to “provoke hostilities successful France,” crimes punishable pinch 30-year condemnation successful France, according to a connection from nan Paris prosecutor’s office.

During an charismatic hunt of nan suspect’s location successful Paris, constabulary agents recovered items that “raised fears of his volition to shape events apt to lead to destabilization of nan Olympic Games,” prosecutors said.

The Russian Embassy successful Paris said it had not received immoderate notification from French authorities astir nan apprehension and has asked French officials for an mentation aft seeing reports astir it. It did not remark further.

The Games’ organizers are facing awesome information challenges, including cyberattack concerns, amid precocious world tensions because of nan Russia’s warfare successful Ukraine and nan Israel-Hamas conflict successful Gaza.

There are besides elaborate disinformation campaigns orchestrated retired of Russia, targeting nan Olympics and France’s caller elections, according to French officials and cybersecurity experts successful Europe and nan United States.

“We person a database of threats connected which we are peculiarly focused, including nan cyberthreat,” Sonia Fibleuil, a National Police spokesperson, told The Associated Press.

Such threats “can dwell of clone news and disinformation aliases online campaigns to amplify a portion of news pinch bots and wide move it,” Fibleuil said.

In an illustration this week, French intelligence recovered that a video connected societal media supposedly showing a Hamas threat against nan Olympics was fake, generated by AI and appeared to person links to Russia, according to a French information official. The charismatic was not authorized to beryllium publically named discussing intelligence matters.

A Hamas charismatic connected Telegram besides denied nan militant group was down nan video.

Earlier Wednesday successful a abstracted plot, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said successful an question and reply pinch French broadcaster BFMTV that a young man was arrested successful Gironde, a region successful southwest France, connected suspicion of “planning a convulsive action against nan Olympic Games.”

Police arrested nan 18-year-old man Tuesday connected accusations that he was readying to target nan “organization of nan Games,” Darmanin said.

He did not springiness specifications connected nan suspect’s imaginable targets aliases whether they were successful Paris aliases successful different French cities hosting Olympic events that tally done Aug. 11.

“We are still moving connected this lawsuit ... (we) debar giving specifications ... but we deliberation location is simply a link,” Darmanin said. “It’s been established that this personification wanted to onslaught nan Olympic Games.”

Paris has deployed 35,000 police officers each time for nan Olympics, pinch a highest of 45,000 for the opening ceremony. In addition, 10,000 soldiers are taking portion successful information operations successful nan Paris region.

A 10,000-strong subject unit is operating streets and sites successful nan Paris region and carrying retired different information missions.

France besides is getting help from much than 40 countries that together person sent astatine slightest 1,900 constabulary reinforcements.

Surk reported from Nice, France.