International Cops Arrive to Boost Security for World Cup
June 7, 2006
German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble on Tuesday welcomed a group of 300 police officers from 13 countries to help German authorities boost security during the four-week tournament.
"We are now very well prepared at all levels of security. This includes Germany's municipalities, regions and the nation as a whole, but also as far as cooperation with international authorities and police is concerned," Schäuble said.
"Although you can never guarantee 100 percent security, I'm convinced people will feel safe here and enjoy a happy World Cup," he added.
Schäuble said the foreign police officers would be given wide-ranging powers -- they will check the identification of people, ban troublemakers from stadiums and other places as well as detain violent fans.
German authorities believe that the wide availability of cheap beer and the fact that Germany is served by low-budget flights from all over Europe make the 2006 World Cup a potentially high-risk event. They admit that, right now, they are more worried about soccer hooligans than they are about al Qaeda. German police have been busy for some time amassing intelligence from around the world to prevent known hooligans from entering the country.
New worries
Traditionally, trouble from hooligans has come from English, Dutch and German fans. But recent reports from Poland suggest that a radical hooligan fringe is on the rise there. Authorities in Germany consider it a worrying development since Poland is one of Germany's neighbors and the two nations have been drawn to play each other in the first round.
German security experts believe that the risk of violence is high for about a third of the 64 matches to be played in 12 cities. Police estimate that around 10,000 soccer fans are prone to violence.
Another area of concern is the more than 200 so-called public viewing sites across the country. This is where fans without tickets can watch matches on giant video screens. These potential flashpoints will be prime sites for the deployment of the international police officers in Germany.
Close cooperation with Britain
German security authorities have been working especially closely with British police who have sent 79 officers. They will be working with the German police at ports, airports and in trains and serve as liaison officers in the National Information and Cooperation Center, the security headquarters for the World Cup, which is based in Berlin.
"In England we've been working very closely with our German government colleagues and our police colleagues for the past two years," said Steve Thomas from the Manchester Police Force and one of the cops helping out with the World Cup.
"I was at the European Championships 2004 and in the last four years I've traveled Europe for Championship Games and UEFA Cup games, and I can say without doubt that the level of cooperation is absolutely second to none," Thomas said. "Everything is being taken care of, everything is being planned for."
Last week, for example, Britain banned more than 3,000 known English hooligans from traveling to Germany. However, more than 300 of them have refused to hand in their passports to the authorities. The British interior ministry has voiced fears that some of them may have already entered Germany.
NATO surveillance planes take off
In addition to the foreign hands helping out at the World Cup, Germany's military will also be pitching in with around 7,000 soldiers. They will be chiefly involved in possible air rescue operations and detecting radioactive materials if necessary.
In addition, NATO surveillance planes will monitor German airspace starting Wednesday and will continue to do so until the tournament ends on July 9.
The last soccer World Cup played in Europe -- in 1998 in France -- was marred by violent hooligans who left a French policeman severely disabled.