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| Brazil Arrests 10 in Terror Plot as Olympics Near, Officials Say | Brazil Arrests 10 in Terror Plot as Olympics Near, Officials Say |
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| RIO DE JANEIRO — The Brazilian authorities arrested 10 members of an Islamist militant group that was organizing terror attacks, officials announced Thursday, raising tension around the country just two weeks before the start of the Olympic Games. | RIO DE JANEIRO — The Brazilian authorities arrested 10 members of an Islamist militant group that was organizing terror attacks, officials announced Thursday, raising tension around the country just two weeks before the start of the Olympic Games. |
| The Federal Police said in a statement that the suspects belonged to a group called the Defenders of Sharia. Agents from an antiterrorism unit are investigating the group’s activities in the several states, including Rio de Janeiro, where the Games will take place. | The Federal Police said in a statement that the suspects belonged to a group called the Defenders of Sharia. Agents from an antiterrorism unit are investigating the group’s activities in the several states, including Rio de Janeiro, where the Games will take place. |
| The arrests were announced at a time when the Brazilian authorities are coming under scrutiny over security preparations for the Olympics. Responding to the truck massacre last week in France, Brazil’s sports minister, Leonardo Picciani, told reporters on Wednesday that “the government is absolutely convinced that the Games will be safe.” | The arrests were announced at a time when the Brazilian authorities are coming under scrutiny over security preparations for the Olympics. Responding to the truck massacre last week in France, Brazil’s sports minister, Leonardo Picciani, told reporters on Wednesday that “the government is absolutely convinced that the Games will be safe.” |
| Brazil’s justice minister, Alexandre de Moraes, said Thursday that Brazil’s main intelligence agency, known as ABIN, was working together with foreign intelligence services and the Federal Police, an investigative force in Brazil that is similar to the F.B.I. | Brazil’s justice minister, Alexandre de Moraes, said Thursday that Brazil’s main intelligence agency, known as ABIN, was working together with foreign intelligence services and the Federal Police, an investigative force in Brazil that is similar to the F.B.I. |
| Officials said that the people arrested had communicated with one another via WhatsApp and Telegram, two mobile messaging services. Mr. Moraes said the suspects had been taken into custody “when they went from basic commentaries about the Islamic State to preparatory acts.” | Officials said that the people arrested had communicated with one another via WhatsApp and Telegram, two mobile messaging services. Mr. Moraes said the suspects had been taken into custody “when they went from basic commentaries about the Islamic State to preparatory acts.” |
| Still, Mr. Moraes emphasized the group’s embryonic nature, calling it “an amateur cell without any preparation.” He said its members had been seeking to buy weapons in Paraguay, including an AK-47 rifle, but that no such arms acquisitions were confirmed. | Still, Mr. Moraes emphasized the group’s embryonic nature, calling it “an amateur cell without any preparation.” He said its members had been seeking to buy weapons in Paraguay, including an AK-47 rifle, but that no such arms acquisitions were confirmed. |
| “This is a disorganized cell,” Mr. Moraes said, who described all the suspects arrested as Brazilian citizens. He said that intercepted messages showed members of the group celebrating the recent attacks in Orlando, Fla., and Nice, France. | “This is a disorganized cell,” Mr. Moraes said, who described all the suspects arrested as Brazilian citizens. He said that intercepted messages showed members of the group celebrating the recent attacks in Orlando, Fla., and Nice, France. |
| Mr. Moraes did not provide more details about what kind of an attack the group was planning, but he said officials had to act “because of the proximity of the Olympics.” | |
| Concern has been increasing here over the potential for terrorist attacks around the Olympics, with police bomb-detonation squads responding to various reports of bags left in public areas (no explosive devices have been found). These fears are relatively new in Brazil, a country that has largely been spared the kind of large-scale attacks that have horrified Europe, the Middle East, the United States and many other parts of the world. | Concern has been increasing here over the potential for terrorist attacks around the Olympics, with police bomb-detonation squads responding to various reports of bags left in public areas (no explosive devices have been found). These fears are relatively new in Brazil, a country that has largely been spared the kind of large-scale attacks that have horrified Europe, the Middle East, the United States and many other parts of the world. |
| Brazilian officials have also said they were enhancing security measures following a report by the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors jihadist websites, saying that a group calling itself Ansar al-Khilafah Brazil had proclaimed allegiance toAbu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State. | |
| Still, Mr. Moraes said that violent crime remained the priority ahead of the Olympics. Despite gun control measures, Rio is still awash in weapons, with drug gangs wielding control over swaths of the city. The authorities have begun deploying tens of thousands of troops to bolster security in Rio. | Still, Mr. Moraes said that violent crime remained the priority ahead of the Olympics. Despite gun control measures, Rio is still awash in weapons, with drug gangs wielding control over swaths of the city. The authorities have begun deploying tens of thousands of troops to bolster security in Rio. |
| “The biggest concern is still crime,” said Mr. Moraes. | “The biggest concern is still crime,” said Mr. Moraes. |