- Title: Stretched and stressed, French police prepare for soccer spectacle
- Date: 17th May 2016
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (MAY 17, 2016) (REUTERS) SIGN ON BUILDING READING (French): "Police station" FLOWER BOUQUET ABOVE MEMORIAL PLAQUE ON BUILDING (SOUNDBITE) (French) HEAD OF USGP POLICE UNION IN PARIS, ROCCO CONTENTO, SAYING: "It's an international event and I can tell you that terrorists wait for something like this to happen in order to carry out an attack, because obviously you will have all the countries in Europe present. Nevertheless, significant security and vigilance measures have been taken; all policemen will be contributing, there will be no days off. Everyone will be working everyday to ensure these significant security measures remain in place and there will be checks within the stadiums - and well before entering. It will be unprecedented and there will be a permanent state of stress for security forces, because there will be millions of people coming together in Paris and across France. So it's going to be very complicated to manage." PARIS, FRANCE (RECENT - MAY 9, 2016) (REUTERS) EIFFEL TOWER
- Embargoed: 1st June 2016 15:00
- Keywords: Euro 2016 soccer tournament France protests clashes police
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0034I74TAF
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: France's stretched police force has had to contend with two militant attacks in a year and regular street protests, and now it faces the task of keeping millions of soccer fans safe when the country hosts the Euro 2016 tournament next month.
The Nov. 13 attacks, the worst on French soil since World War Two, killed 130 people and included suicide bombings near the national soccer stadium. The killings, which came 10 months after a militant attack on the Paris offices of satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, forced the Socialist government to push for tougher security measures.
The measures include a state of emergency, which has seen a rise in house raids, street stop and searches, as well as arrests of suspected militants and those linked to them.
Even before the Islamic State attacks on Paris in November, and the ensuing national state of emergency that increased their duties, officers had racked up a backlog of 20 million hours in overtime, equivalent to three weeks each.
They must police the June 10-July 10 Euro 2016, when about 2.5 million people are due to attend matches in 10 stadiums across the country and about 7.5 million are expected to converge on "fan zones" in cities, we well as the annual Tour de France cycling race which runs through most of July.
Security experts and police officials have said the fan zones will be the biggest challenge and that there just won't be enough officers to police the tournament given that the priority remains securing sensitive locations against potential attacks.
Plans are afoot to ensure the French army, which has about 10,000 soldiers stationed across the country's cities as part of anti-terrorism measures, will be handed more responsibility to protect sites during Euro 2016, relieving some police officers.
The French police force and gendarmes numbers almost 200,000, having suffered around 13,000 job cuts since 2007 as the government sought to reduce public spending.
They are entitled to claim an hour of holiday for every hour of overtime worked, but there is little prospect of them being able to do so any time soon.
The events also come at a time of civil unrest ahead of next year's presidential elections that has seen demonstrations against a labour reform law spill over into violence on a weekly basis this year.
French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the government acknowledges the strain placed on police and greatly appreciates their commitment.
Since the protests began two months ago, several hundred police have been injured in clashes, often with hooded youths hurling stones and petrol bombs. Protest organizers have accused security forces of heavy-handed policing.
They say they are receiving a rising number of calls from officers complaining of the stresses they face and that ahead of next month's tournament there is no capacity or plan in place to give them respite.
Forces have been given new equipment and the government is trying to alleviate some of the staff burden. It has promised 9,000 new police recruits, with around 800 of them due to join in June, even though these will need time to gain experience.
Police unions have called for officers to stage a nationwide demonstration on Wednesday (May 18) to highlight their strained conditions and also the rise in anti-police rhetoric from protest groups in recent weeks. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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