RMC Sport takes you into the security bubble set up around the Stade de France during the high-risk meeting between France and Israel (0-0), Thursday November 14 in the Nations League.
4:15 p.m., the Stade de France square is still open to pedestrian traffic. As the most sensitive match of the year between France and Israel (0-0) approaches on national territory, calm reigns north of Paris. In a few seconds, the mobile force units (UFM) will show that this evening will not be like any other. Positioned around the enclosure, these UFMs line up and begin the evacuation of the square surrounding the Saint-Denis enclosure. The anti-terrorist perimeter comes into force. The area is completely evacuated and the accredited are the only ones who can enter this place which borders the enclosure. Two levels of filtering are established by the authorities. After an initial identity check, a search and pat-down are also carried out by 1,600 security agents.
The most secure place in the Paris region
From that moment on, “it's a bit like the Bastille Day parade”, as a police officer on patrol summed it up with a smile this Thursday evening. Mobile force units flock to the Stade de France. So much so that some alleys are completely blocked by mobile gendarmerie vehicles. Less than four hours before the start of this France-Israel, the 2,500 police and gendarmes are perfectly visible. In uniform but also in civilian clothes, among the few supporters who are beginning to join the enclosure, in calm, without agitation. The atmosphere remains gloomy.
The Stade de France will become, for one evening, the most secure place in the Paris region. The police/supporter ratio is so impressive that these images mark the first spectators arriving on the Stade de France square. There is blue everywhere, with one member of the police for every four spectators on average. Never during this evening will the filtering points installed around the enclosure be overwhelmed. Only a little over 13,000 spectators will be present for this match (16,000 officially), the flow is continuous but far (very far) from being impressive. The atmosphere will never take off, only a few Israeli flags fly outside the Stade de France. Blues supporters will remain the most visible outside the enclosure.
But the situation quickly escalated at 6:55 p.m. The delegation from the Hebrew State is approaching from its hotel, which is located near the Stade de France. A police helicopter flies over the area. On the ground, the police escort is impressive for the two buses in the selection. Surrounded by the BRAV-M, the RAID and several police vans, they arrive at high speed in the basement of the stadium. Unheard of for a football team in France. The police officers and gendarmes on duty around the compound can now wipe their foreheads to remove the first drop of stress. The convoy, which led to some tensions between the various stakeholders, enters the backstage of the Stade de France. A smooth arrival. But the evening is far from over. At the same time, authorities are keeping an eye on the pro-Palestinian rally which will take place a few kilometers from the stadium. Although it never overflowed, the attention surrounding this gathering was significant. A typical example of what the police fear.
Israeli supporters got off the bus under BIS escort
A few floors above the parking lot, on the 5th floor, in the stadium security headquarters, it's time to gather. At 7:20 p.m., Bruno Retailleau, the Minister of the Interior, and the Paris Police Prefect, Laurent Nunez, enter this place where calm reigns between the different services (BSPP, Raid, BRI, Prefectures, FFF, etc.). .). The operators speak in low voices in front of dozens of screens with the stadium's video surveillance cameras. No major alerts were detected at this time of the evening. The Minister of the Interior discusses, asks a lot of questions and takes the pulse with the agents who manage the different teams on the ground. This command room, to which RMC Sport was able to go on Thursday evening, above all allows us to take stock of the situation fairly regularly around the meeting. Filtering, inscriptions on t-shirts, flags displayed, buses that do not respect a first screening… everything goes. This location is strategic in the smooth running of the security plan and liaison with the Israeli authorities.
In this security PC, we will also watch for the arrival of a rather special bus. A bus chartered by the Israeli embassy in France where around a hundred supporters of the Jewish state make up the official trip. Escorted by the BRI and a mobile force unit, the fans arrived an hour before the start of the match, in a buffer zone where plainclothes police officers lined the landscape. As soon as the first Israeli supporter disembarks, BIS agents emerge from their following vehicle, assault rifles in hand, hooded and helmeted. The scene is impressive, under the stunned looks of the other spectators. As soon as this small group enters the stadium grounds, on the roof of the stadium, snipers are pre-positioned with a visual on the bus. These few supporters will spend the entire match in the official parking lot located opposite the main stand of the Stade de France.
While with the start of the match, some police officers outside relieve the pressure a little by eating. Inside the enclosure, the pressure builds quickly. A fight breaks out behind Mike Maignan's goal, where supporters with Israeli flags are involved. In the security PC, the tension rises a notch. In less than two minutes, a crowd movement occurred at the second ring forcing the stewards to intervene. At this time, the origin of this altercation is not known. Police officers, already present inside the stadium, are also nearby to reduce tension. During the meeting, on several occasions, the message “free the hostages” will be chanted by Israeli supporters.
Apart from this moment of tension at the start of the match and the few whistles heard during the Israeli anthem, the meeting took place calmly. The advantage of a low attendance like this Thursday evening is that in a few minutes the stadium and the square are emptied of supporters. This allowed the authorities to fairly quickly evacuate the “official” supporters of the Israel team. An evening to quickly forget.
Nicolas Pelletier and the French team cell
