France has announced it is scaling back plans to host 600,000 spectators for the opening ceremonies of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Games.
Concerns over security were given as the main reason by the French government.
The number of spectators will be capped at 325,000 on July 26.
The request to cut crowd sizes reportedly came from French President Emmanuel Macron. Questioned by MPs at an Olympics security hearing in the French Senate on Tuesday, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin warned that there was a risk of terrorist attacks by Daesh* sympathizers.
Although French intelligence services have not identified any specific plots targeting the Olympics, the the minister raised the specter of potential threats from extremist organizations and environmental activists.
“Those are not empty words: [the Olympics] is, for the Interior Ministry, the biggest logistical and security challenge we’ve ever had to organize,” Darmanin stated.
Authorities are making thorough checks on close to 1 million people who will either take part in or have access to the Olympics. As a result, 280 have already been banned on security grounds.
French authorities earlier said that police would use real-time cameras linked to artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to ensure security at the Olympic Games. But rights groups swiftly slammed the French government’s plan for AI video surveillance as a threat to civil liberties.
* A terrorist group, also known as ISIS or ISIL, outlawed in Russia and many other countries.