DOHA —
Ten thousand French fans have registered for
World Cup fan passes, and France
will not boycott the tournament in Qatar, its ambassador to the Gulf state has
said.
اضافة اعلان
Ambassador Jean-Baptiste Faivre also said in a
television interview broadcast late Monday that 300 French police and
paramilitary gendarmes will help Qatar with security for the World Cup that
runs from November 20 to December 18.
Qatar has faced intense scrutiny over its human
rights record in the run-up to the tournament. Paris and some other French
cities have said they will not show matches on giant public screens as they
traditionally do for major sports events.
Former French international
Eric Cantona has been
among figures in Europe calling for a boycott of the World Cup over Qatar’s
treatment of foreign workers and rights for women and the LGBTQ community.
Faivre told the Al-Kass sports channel that these
protests “do not reflect the position of the government”.
“France will not boycott the World Cup,” he added.
According to Faivre, matches would not be screened in French cities because of
the “cold temperatures” and the “economic cost” of setting up fan zones.
He said there were “preconceived ideas” in France
about Qatar and that “more balance is needed”.
“Of course
Qatar is known as an economic partner and
it is true that investment and contracts are synonymous with jobs and growth in
France, but relations between Qatar and France go well beyond this.”
FIFA says that France is one of the top 10 markets
for the 3.1 million tickets, and the ambassador said 10,000 French people have
registered for the Hayya fan passes which are needed to enter the country.
More than one million people are expected to visit
Qatar during the tournament.
France is one of 15 nations helping Qatar with World
Cup security. Turkey, Pakistan, and Morocco are sending thousands of police to
boost Qatari forces.
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