Scores of terror suspects try to enter Games venues

France’s terror alert remains at highest level as security checks reveal more than 130 people on its watchlist applied to gain internal access to the Paris Olympic Games.

Thousands of criminals, including Islamist radicals and suspects with close links to Islamist and ­extremist political positions have been denied access to the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.

French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin confirmed that more than 3000 people had been refused accreditations for the Games, including more than 100 of those deemed to be the highest threat to national security.

Accredited personnel are able to enter the internal areas of the Olympic Games, and as well as ­officials, athletes and media, the accreditations include the Games workforce such as volunteers, hospitality staff, drivers, venue ­security, and technicians.

Nearly a million people are ­involved in the Games and have been subject to French police ­security checks.

With less than two weeks until the July 26 opening ceremony, Mr Darmanin said 3512 people had been refused accreditation because they could pose a threat to the security of the event.

He said 130 of those were ­rejected on state security grounds, having been on the French government’s Fiche S, a watchlist of terror suspects.

Dozens of people with ties to radical Islamists, or the ultra left and ultra right, were also turned down, Mr Darmanin said.

France has been on the highest alert since March 22 after a terrorist attack in Moscow.

Up to 45,000 French police and military personnel will be ­deployed to protect the Games, in addition to 22,000 private contractors working on venue security. That has been bolstered by nearly 2000 security specialists from 40 allied nations arriving in the French capital this week.

“A large number of them will be deployed in train stations, airports and around the thirty-nine Olympic and sports venues ,” the French interior ministry said.

Ministry officials said foreigners were helping in critical areas such as dog-handling teams to ­detect explosives, bomb disposal experts and other counter-terrorism operations. Poland, Spain and Germany have deployed their teams to France as part of the international security coalition.

Three months ago French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal warned “the terrorist threat is real, it’s strong” and revealed two plots by suspected Islamic ­extremists had been thwarted earlier in the year. Threats are also heightened because of the uncertain domestic political situation and the Israel-Gaza conflict.

Australia’s Smart Traveller ­advises to exercise a high degree of caution in France due to the threat of terrorism.

Some sections of central Paris have already been closed in preparation for the Games, while the activation of three rings of tighter security measures are ready to be activated from next week.

At this stage officials have insisted that the opening ceremony will take place on the Seine, ­although the most immediate worries are not about civil unrest or terrorism for the 360,000 spectators, but the speed of the river’s flow.

The river is currently high and flowing at a fast 500 cubic metres a second, a result of heavy rain several weeks ago. A handful of the taller ships carrying large delegations, including Australia’s team of 460, may not fit under the bridges between Austerlitz and Iena at the Eiffel Tower.

Officials are looking at hiring more smaller boats and readjusting the timing as the boats would move faster downstream.

Some planned rehearsals for the ceremony have had to be cancelled because the river has been flowing over 670 cubic m/s, four to five times the normal summer conditions.

“While the water speed poses issues for the boat’s maneuverability, it also impacts on the co-­ordination of the river parade with the show on the quays,” Thierry Reboul, Paris 2024’s director of ceremonies, told Agence France-Presse. He is hoping the calmer weather forecast will keep the flow rate below 500 cubic m/s.