More than 60 people were detained. "The goal of the operations was to monitor and check out Islamic networks two weeks ahead of the World Cup," Roland Jacquard of the Paris-based International Observatory on Terrorism told Reuters. "The fear is that arms and explosives may have been hidden by members of the armed Islamic group (GIA) in France ahead of the championships," Jacquard said. The GIA is Algeria's most radical guerrilla organisation.

On France's roads, meanwhile militant truckers, taking advantage of the impending sportingextravaganza to press their demands for more pay and better working conditions, blocked traffic in 17 separate protests nationwide.