Overview

• Authorities deployed more than a thousand police and military personnel, backed by helicopters and drones, with snipers stationed at the Israeli team’s hotel and on the stadium roof.
• The area around Bluenergy Stadium was designated a red zone with concrete barriers and metal detectors, limiting entry to ticket holders only.
• Roughly 10,000 people marched in support of Palestine before kickoff, and police used water cannons to stop groups trying to move toward the venue, according to an AFP journalist.
• The Israeli team traveled to the stadium under heavy escort as routes and perimeters were tightly controlled throughout the city.
• Organizers urged suspension of the match and pressed FIFA to exclude Israel, while the game went ahead before a relatively small crowd with just over 9,000 tickets sold.