Israel is finalizing its stalwart security plans as thousands of local and international fans prepare for the first tip-off of the Euroleague Final Four basketball tournament on Thursday night at Yad Eliyahu in Tel Aviv.
Three and a half thousand security personnel will be on duty, at a ratio of one to every three spectators, according to news reports. Furthermore, police officers will escort the players to and from all matches for the duration of the three-day competition.
The European championship is receiving much coverage in the Israeli media, both because the local Maccabi Tel Aviv team is one of the finalists, and because, until recently, Israel has been a pariah of the sports community, as a result of the danger posed by the violent Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Maccabi Chairman Shimon Mizrahi convinced the Euroleague’s management to host the tournament in Israel, arguing that Israel was no less safe than Spain. He was welcomed as a national hero upon his return to Israel. However, of the three foreign teams competing in the Final Four, the fans of an Italian team reportedly refused to travel to the match and supporters of the Russian team are sending a limited delegation.
Israeli security officials have been on high alert throughout the country since the beginning of April fearing reprisals for the state’s assassination of two prominent Hamas leaders.
The European soccer association UEFA last week lifted a ban on official international matches being played in Israel, after a two-year period wherein Israel played its “home games” abroad.