French law enforcement officers arrested an 18-year-old Chechen on suspicion of planning an attack on a football stadium during the Summer Olympics in Paris. This was reported by Reuters with reference to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin.
According to him, the arrested person planned to attack the Geoffroy Guichard stadium in the city of Saint-Etienne. There, during the Olympics, six group stage football matches are to be held; the stadium seats about 40 thousand people.
The Chechen was “inspired” by Islamist ideology and wanted to attack spectators and security personnel at the stadium and then “die a martyr’s death,” Darmanen said.
According to BFMTV, the arrested man was charged as the head of a criminal terrorist community. The publication writes that the Chechen came to France in 2023 with his parents.
The Summer Olympic Games will be held in Paris from July 26 to August 11. After the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall, radio station Europe 1 reported that French intelligence services recommended canceling the opening ceremony of the Olympics.