France foiled 3 attacks against Olympic Games: prosecutor

French authorities stopped three plots to attack the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics in Paris, the country's counterterrorism prosecutor said on Wednesday.

Olivier Christen told the radio network Franceinfo that five suspects had been taken into custody on terrorism-related charges.

The arrests occurred amid heightened security in the lead-up to and during the Games.

Authorities conducted 936 house searches so far in 2024, compared to 153 last year.

What do we know about the alleged terror plots?

One of the suspected plots was previously announced when French police arrested an 18-year-old man of Chechnyan origin for allegedly planning to attack venues around the Geoffroy Guichard Stadium in Saint-Etienne.

Although the stadium is some 500 kilometers (310 miles) from Paris, it was used to host soccer matches during the group stage of the Olympic tournament.

Christen said another alleged plot targeted "Israeli institutions or representatives of Israel in Paris."

However, he said, "The Israeli team itself was not specifically targeted," without providing further details about the alleged plot.

A third suspected attack plot involved two people from Gironde in southwest France, Christen said.

The Paris Olympics was held against the backdrop of Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza and the Russian war in Ukraine. Christen said jihadi threats dominated the foiled plots.

Around 80% of legal proceedings against the suspects reference Islamist ideology, he said.

zc/sms (AP, AFP)