Olympic scandal: Israeli athletes face threats amid Gaza tensions
Scandal at the Olympic Games in Paris. Israeli athletes are receiving anonymous threats related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Gaza Strip. The Olympians do not hide the fear that they fear for their lives and health.
The representatives of the Israeli Olympic mission have officially reported the threats. Athletes are receiving threats indirectly, paying for the escalation of the war in the Gaza Strip. The possibility of a broader conflict in the Middle East is, unfortunately, very real.
According to the head of the Israeli National Olympic Committee, Yael Arad, Israeli athletes are being terrorized and cannot focus on sports competition. Arad is calling on the French authorities to take measurable actions towards catching the perpetrators.
Members of our team received general threats intended to create psychological terror. We do not agree with such treatment - said Yael Arad in an interview with the Associated Press.
French authorities are looking for the culprits
The Paris prosecutor's office launched an investigation last week into the emails that Israeli athletes reportedly received. The origin of the threats is not known at this time.
There was also a leakage of personal data of members of the Israeli Olympic mission. Prosecutors are investigating the issue of incitement to racial hatred, among other things. During the Israel-Paraguay match, obscene gestures were directed at the players.
Israeli athletes are calling for control of emotions. Tom Reuveny, Olympic champion in windsurfing, even stated in an interview with AP that such behaviour could lead to a tragedy similar to the one we know from the Olympic Games in Munich in 1972.
Let us remember that members of the Palestinian organization Black September carried out a terrorist attack, in which 11 Israeli athletes and coaches were killed.
