The Paris memorial ceremony for the victims of the 1972 Munich Olympics terror attack will be held in a secret location, allegedly due to security concerns.
The service – which had been set to take place at the Paris City Hall during the Olympics this year – was cancelled. According to news outlet Israel Hayom, this was due to concerns that the ceremony would be targeted by extremists. A smaller service is now set to be held at a non-disclosed location with fewer attendees.
The Israel Olympic Committee denied the change was made over security concerns. “Due to the delegation’s tight schedule, it was decided to hold the ceremony, in coordination with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, in its full format on August 6 in another location,” they said. “Claims that the ceremony is underground or that it was moved due to any specific security alerts, or that canceling it was considered are fundamentally false claims”.
Victims of the 1972 attack were honoured for the first time at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, after extensive campaigning from the victims’ families. The massacre saw 11 Israeli coaches and athletes killed by Palestinian militant organisation Black September in the Munich Olympic village. In 2022, 50 years after the attack, German police acknowledged wrongdoing for the first time.
The ceremony in Paris will be attended by Bach, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, members of the Israeli delegation, and Jewish communal leaders.
Concerns over Israeli delegates’ safety at the Olympics this year were already high before the change. Paris Police chief Laurent Nunez said last month that “Islamist terrorism” is a major concern for the police this year. He will be deploying 30,000 police across the French capital, as well as 20,000 soldiers.
Israel has also ramped up security ahead of the games, which will take place between July 26 and August 11. The country will be doubling its security budget this year.
“There are so many people who are taking care of us and making us feel secure,” flag-bearer and judo champion Peter Paltchick told Jewish Insider earlier this month. “The staff is really amazing, and I feel that we have nothing to worry about, we are all just focusing on preparing for the game ahead”.
