France to contribute officers to World Cup security in Qatar amid calls for boycott
France’s decision to send officers to Qatar to help with security for the looming football World Cup has raised eyebrows amid widespread calls to boycott the event over human rights abuses. The deployment of an international force – with security from the US, the UK, Turkey and beyond – also highlights the logistical and security challenges of hosting FIFA’s showcase tournament in the tiny Gulf state.
The month-long football extravaganza, which opens in Doha on November 20, made headlines in France this week as Paris and other large cities announced they would not erect the customary giant screens to broadcast the matches in protest at the tournament’s environmental impact and the widely documented rights violations during Qatar’s preparations for the event.
As talk of a boycott gathered momentum, the French interior ministry quietly acknowledged it was sending “about 220” gendarmes and police officers to Qatar to help secure the tournament, confirming a report on Wednesday by the investigative satirical weekly Le Canard enchaîné.
The announcement was distinctly low-key for a country accustomed to playing up its “crowd-management” expertise. And it came just months after that expertise came under question when images emerged of French police teargassing and pepper-spraying whole families – including children – amid chaotic scenes at the Champions League football final near Paris in May, prompting an apology from UEFA.
As the popular football magazine So…
Source : france24
