ATHENS, 20 May 2004 — Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has ordered all factions under his control to prevent any “isolated” attacks on the Athens Summer Olympic Games, the newly arrived head of his Athens diplomatic mission said yesterday.

“We are concerned about the success of the Athens Olympics,” Marwan Abdelhamid, head of the Palestinian Diplomatic Mission to Greece, told reporters at a news conference.

“All Palestinian factions have been instructed to protect, cooperate and prevent any isolated attack.”

Arafat himself had ordered them to work with Greek Games organizers to “ensure the success of the Games,” he said.

“None of the factions are interested in making any attack here, instead they want to help,” Abdelhamid said.

Athens, hosting in August the first Summer Games since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on US cities, has drafted a huge security plan to safeguard the Games.

Several “high risk” national squads, including US and Israeli teams, will be assigned additional protection.

Abdelhamid said several meetings between Palestinian and Greek officials will take place to discuss security.

“In the near future there will be meetings on Olympic security to ensure Palestinian security services and Greek services cooperate to prevent any isolated incident,” he said.

Greece have had traditionally close ties with the Palestinians and with Arafat, who regularly visits Athens.

IOC President Trusts Greek Security

In Lausanne, Switzerland, Olympic president Jacques Rogge is refusing to be drawn into what threatens to become a diplomatic row over security between Greece and Australia ahead of August’s 2004 Games.

Earlier this month head of the Australian Olympic Committee John Coates said Australia may consider sending armed guards with their Olympic team following bomb blasts in Athens.

No one was injured by the trio of blasts 100 days before the Games are due to begin, but they alarmed the sporting world.

Asked about the possibility of armed guards at the Games, Rogge said yesterday: “I trust the Greek authorities with what they are doing.

“As you know, they are working on security with a team containing seven different countries.

“Australia is one of those countries.

“I will not comment on Mr Coates’ comments, I will only say the Greeks are delivering what we have asked them to do.

“Bringing in guards? Well that has been done before. I remember as Belgian team leader in 1984 we had guards because some places in Los Angeles are not safe to go to.”