Intelligence-sharing and foreign expertise to contain terrorism during Brazil Olympics but lone-wolf attacks remain a concern
Carlos Caicedo and Carla Selman - IHS Jane's Intelligence Review
25 August 2015
Brazilian soldiers guard an entrance to the Mare slum in Rio de Janeiro during a protest against violence by security forces on 23 February. Brazil's security operation for the Rio Olympics will be the largest in the country's history. Source: PA
Key Points
For the 2016 Olympics, Brazil is doubling the manpower deployed during the 2014 FIFA football World Cup and is focusing on intelligence-sharing and leveraging foreign expertise.
Although Brazil does not have home-grown terrorist groups, the authorities fear foreign terrorist groups may stage an attack to garner international attention.
Brazil benefits from the experience of organising previous major sporting events such as the World Cup; manpower appears sufficient and centralisation of intelligence will help to prevent terrorism. However, lone-wolf attacks pose the major concern as their prevention is extremely difficult.
EVENT
According to the special secretary for the security of mega-events, Brazil's security operation for the Rio Olympics will be the largest in the country's history.
Brazil's minister of defence on 7 August announced the deployment of 38,000 military personnel, comprising members of the army, navy, and air force, to provide security for the Olympic Games that will take place in Rio between 5 and 21 August 2016. The Paralympics will follow between 7 and 18 September.
Security plan for Olympics
The Rio 2016 Olympics will bring 200 international delegations and up to 1 million tourists to Brazil. According to Andrei Rodrigues of the Special Secretariat for the Security of Mega-Events (Secretaria Extraordinária de Segurança Para Grandes Eventos: SESGE), it will require the biggest security operation in Brazil's history. Formed in 2011, SESGE plans and monitors public security for massive international events, such as the football Confederations Cup and the International Youth Day in 2013, as well as the 2014 World Cup. For the Olympics, it plans the deployment of 85,000 security agents, more than the approximately 40,000 at the 2012 London Olympics. Of these, 47,000 will be from public security entities - such as military and civil police forces, federal highway police, municipal guards, firefighters, and the National Public Security Force - and will work exclusively in Rio.
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