French Interior Minister: Attack on Olympic football tournaments foiled

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The French Interior Minister has said that security authorities had foiled an attack on football events during the Olympic Games in Paris.

Gérald Darmanin said in a statement that members of the Directorate General for Internal Security arrested an 18-year-old man from Chechnya on May 22. He is accused of being behind a plan to attack football events southwest of Lyon.

According to initial investigations, the man was preparing an attack on the Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium in the city of Saint-Etienne, where several games will be played during the Summer Olympics.

The planned attack was directed against spectators and police forces, the statement said.

The suspect reportedly wanted to attack the Olympic events “to die and become a martyr.”

The Olympic Games in Paris will take place from July 26 to August 11.

Before the final at the Stade de France in Paris, football matches will take place in many cities across France.