Rio de Janeiro: A foreign intelligence agency has informed of
a planned terrorist attack on its Rio 2016 Olympic team.
A spokesman for Brazil’s
institutional security cabinet, which oversees the country’s information
services, told AFP: “We were not the source of information and the Brazilian
intelligence agency (Abin) was not officially informed either of this matter.”
The French inquiry report was
published as security services in Rio de Janeiro prepared to stage a simulated
attack this weekend to test counter-terrorism response plans.
Some 500 officers, troops and first
responders will be involved in the exercise at Deodoro station near one of the
venue clusters in the north of the city on Saturday.
Earlier this month, Justice Minister
Alexandre Moraes said that a terror attack during the Olympics was a
“possibility”, but not a “probability”.
In the meantime, Brazil’s ministry of
defence confirmed it was boosting military presence in the host city at the
request of acting governor Francisco Dornelles.
The number of troops deployed in Rio
for the Games rose from 18,000 to 21,000, reaching a total of 41,000 including
those in the five football host cities.
The total number of security
personnel including police will be more than 85,000 – more than double the
number for London 2012.
From July 15 there will be 6,000
soldiers on the streets of Riowith the defence operation officially beginning
when the Athletes’ Village opens on July 24. It will include 12 ships, 70
armoured vehicles, and 28 helicopters.
Intelligence officers from the UK,
US, Spain, Belgium, France, Argentina and Paraguay will also support Brazilian
agencies at an Integrated Anti-Terror Centre in Rio while there will also be
other centres set up in football host cities and in the capital.
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