DHS to ramp up security assistance in Qatar for World Cup
Written by ABC Audio All Rights Reserved on July 2, 2022
(WASHINGTON) — Attending the World Cup in November? The Department of Homeland Security will be on hand to help make sure the soccer tournament is safe and secure, according to a senior department official.
“We are committed to working closely with Qatar to make sure the world can enjoy a safe and secure World Cup,” Rob Silvers, the under secretary for strategy, police and plans at DHS, told ABC News in an interview. “We’re are going to be providing security support to our partner and we’re going to be doing that in a range of ways.”
Silvers said he is headed to Qatar this week to shore up those security partnerships.
One of the ways is by providing Transportation Security Agency (TSA) personnel to provide baggage screening support for people attending the matches.
“We’re going to host a delegation from Qatar at a U.S. airport to show them our airport security practices here because obviously they are expecting a large number of visitors and we want to help them on that front,” Silvers explained.
The department has experience with large scale sporting events domestically, with the U.S. Secret Service taking the lead on security every February at the Super Bowl.
The Secret Service will be on sight helping out the Qataris at the World Cup.
“We’re going to have our Secret Service providing support on protective details and on major event security coordination,” Silvers said.
Silvers also explained they are providing cyber resources through the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA)
The DHS official told ABC News there is no credible threat to the World Cup but “it’s a large and prominent gathering, and we should always be prepared from a security perspective.”
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