British and German police team up against hooligans ahead of England-Serbia match

Police in the city of Gelsenkirchen estimate that around 500 Serbian hooligans could attend the match, raising fears of a repeat of the violent attacks on England fans at EURO 2016.

Police check security at the central station in Munich. (Photo: Phuong Hoa/VNA)

British police are working with their German counterparts to ensure a safe EURO 2024 for England fans amid fears that Serbian hooligans are targeting the match between the two sides in the German city of Gelsenkirchen on June 16.

England and Serbia will open Group C in what is considered the highest-risk match of this year's EURO, with around 20,000 England fans and 10,000 Serbians expected to attend in Gelsenkirchen.

Police in the city of Gelsenkirchen estimate that around 500 Serbian hooligans could attend the match, raising fears of a repeat of the violent attacks on England fans at EURO 2016.

In addition, the fact that the England-Serbia match is the only match in this year's tournament where low-alcohol beer is allowed to be served also increases the risk of fights or clashes between fans of the two teams.

British police say they are working closely with German police to ensure a safe and trouble-free Euros for England fans. Around 300,000 England fans are expected to travel to Germany for the tournament and British police have imposed bans on around 2,000 of the country's extremists.

Since the evening of June 14, many England fans have begun gathering at a bar in Heinrich-Konig-Platz in the city center of Gelsenkirchen.

To ensure security for the England-Serbia match, German police have planned to deploy more personnel than usual, and are in close contact with the authorities of the two countries to exchange information about disruptive events.

Meanwhile, the organizers of the match in Gelsenkirchen also put forward plans to protect fans in the stadium. Accordingly, anyone who feels “unsafe” or “threatened” can use the password “Panama” to tell the police or tournament staff.

They will be taken to a safe location and the Panama team will be activated, a multi-disciplinary, multi-lingual team trained in crisis intervention and de-escalation.

Wilhelm Wessels, director of the Euro 2024 project in Gelsenkirchen, said that all law enforcement forces from fire, police, public order forces to EURO 2024 service personnel are familiar with Panama regulations and can respond appropriately.

In addition, a similar mechanism to Panama has also been applied at some Bundesliga matches and major music festivals in Germany. The word “Panama” originates from a famous German children's story about a tiger and a bear who find their way to Panama./.

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/canh-sat-anh-va-duc-hop-tac-chong-hooligan-truoc-tran-anh-serbia-post959235.vnp