UPDATE - Pro-Palestinian groups gather to protest against France-Israel football match

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By Nur Asena Erturk

Pro-Palestinian groups Thursday gathered near the Stade de France in the Parisian suburb to protest against the France-Israel football match.

French authorities earlier geared up for the match over possible tensions due to Israel’s relentless attacks on Palestinians and Lebanon.

The French team will host Israel in Stade de France in Paris in the evening.

Groups gathered near the stadium to express support for Palestine and Gaza. Videos shared online showed protesters carrying Palestinian flags.

“There is no particular threat, but it remains a high-risk match,” Paris police chief Laurent Nunez told broadcaster Franceinfo earlier.

He vowed an “extremely, extremely strong” response of the security forces under his authority if violence occurs.

French President Emmanuel Macron, Prime Minister Michel Barnier, and former President Nicolas Sarkozy are set to attend the match.

A total of 4,000 security officers are expected to be deployed around and in the stadium, as well as in the public transport and inside Paris. The elite forces of the French police, Raid units will be responsible for the Israeli team’s safety.

The match has drawn sharp criticism from advocacy groups, with the Stop Genocide collective requesting its cancellation.

The French Football Federation (FFF) officials are also said to have admitted "concerns" about this match to UEFA, the European football governing body, and to French authorities from the start.

But the FFF said the decision is beyond their control and pointed to UEFA as the sole decision-maker, stressing that France "was ordered" to hold the match despite the tensions caused by the situation in Palestine.

France had voiced its opposition to relocating the upcoming football match, claiming that doing so would represent giving in to threats of violence and antisemitism.

Last week, Maccabi Tel Aviv fans caused a commotion by attacking Palestinian supporters and provoking them before and during a UEFA Europa League game against Ajax Amsterdam in the Netherlands.

Violence erupted before and after the match, causing widespread outrage, with reports of Israeli fans fighting bystanders, vandalizing property, and setting a Palestinian flag alight. More than 60 people were detained in connection with unrest before and after the match in Amsterdam.