Minister: Terrorism "biggest threat" to Olympics
11 September 2007
China's public security minister, Zhou Yongkang, called terrorism "the biggest threat" to next year's Beijing Olympics, state media reported. "Although the general security situation for the Beijing Olympics remains stable, we still face the challenges of terrorism, separatism and extremism," said Zhou. "Terrorism, in particular, poses the biggest threat." Zhou's vice minister, Liu Jing, said some organizations and individuals were planning to disrupt the Olympic torch relay, and that emergencies caused by football fans were another danger. Some 80,000 people will be directly involved in Olympic security, including police officers, professional security guards and volunteers. The officials made their remarks at a security conference for the Beijing games, which included representatives from 32 countries and organizations like Interpol.