While a match is to be held between Israel and France at the Stade de France on November 14, calls for the cancellation of the meeting are increasing, fearing excesses. Bruno Retailleau has made his decision.
On November 14, France will face Israel in the League of Nations at the Stade de France. The football event could take place under high tension, with the conflict in the Middle East not weakening. While Parisian supporters displayed a “Free Palestine” banner at the Parc des Princes, political demonstrations could multiply during such a clash. Violence also took place against supporters of the Israeli football club in Amsterdam this Thursday, November 7 after the Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv. 5 people had to be hospitalized and 62 others were arrested.
This calls into question the smooth running of the match in France and accentuates the fear of excesses. Several calls for the meeting to be canceled were then launched. Earlier this week, pro-Palestinian activists demonstrated at the French Football Federation to demand the match be canceled. LFI deputy Louis Boyard also called for the same decision on November 1, circulating a petition against the match outfit.
An RN deputy, for his part, proposed another solution: relocate the meeting. Julien Odoul has, in fact, recommended RMC to hold the meeting in Corsica because, according to him, “there is no anti-Semitism or pro-Hamas provocations” on the island. Last month, the Belgium-Israel match was relocated to Budapest, considering that the security conditions were not met to organize it.
The match held at the Stade de France but with an unprecedented security system
The president of Crif, Yonathan Arfi, for his part said he was certainly “worried” in view of the match, but that “in principle, he refuses to give in to the haters, the anti-Semites, the violent”, therefore placing himself in favor of its maintenance. Bruno Retailleau, Minister of the Interior, supported the same speech thus recording the initial progress. “Some are calling for the relocation of the France-Israel match. I do not accept it: France is not backing down because that would amount to abdicating in the face of threats of violence and anti-Semitism,” he wrote on X.
The minister specifies, however, that the “necessary security arrangements” will be taken for the match. According to BFMTVthe system put in place at the Stade de France will be “unheard of”. More than 2,000 police officers or gendarmes will monitor the interior and surroundings of the stadium. The closure of nearby shops and bars in the afternoon is also planned. The Israeli delegation will, for its part, be protected 24 hours a day by elite police units and their hotel address will remain confidential.
In this climate, the match was not a great success, with only a quarter of the places occupied: of the 80,000 places available, only 20,000 found takers.