'Qatar hosting the safest FIFA World Cup'

The FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 has turned out to be the safest event of its kind with zero major crime, a senior official said Wednesday, while pointing out that the reports received by the National Command Centre (NCC) were few and minor compared to the number of fans."The event, with half of the days over, proved the success of all parties and their co-operation in organising," explained Brig Abdullah Khalifa al-Muftah, head of the Media Unit of the FIFA World Cup 2022 Safety and Security Operations Committee and Commander of the Security Media Sector and Community Partnership."Qatar is leading in international safety and security indicators, such as the Global Peace Index, the Numbeo Database, and other indicators,” he pointed out at a press conference Wednesday."The minor incidents were handled by the security authorities with high efficiency. The fans experienced smooth entry and exit to stadiums and they were provided guidance and assistance in all events."The efforts of the tournament security force and the Ministry of Interior (MoI) have delivered the safest ever FIFA World Cup, in accordance with the best standards at competitive and non-competitive facilities."The appropriate security environment was provided for the participating teams and referees in the stadiums, training sites and residences. The security authorities were also keen to follow up and address any feedback from the fans through various media,” he added.Col. Dr. Jabr Hammoud al-Nuaimi, the official spokesman for the MoI and the security force of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, said that all stakeholders made great efforts using the latest communication systems that linked all units through the operations rooms in the tournament facilities and the fan areas, linked to both the tournament command centre and the Central Operations Room of the NCC.The total number of calls received by the NCC reached 585,606, including 16,000 in the official languages of the World Cup. The communications included inquiries, suggestions, and complaints in different languages, based on the diversity of the fans' languages.Various security patrols took out 4,256 trips to secure the movement of the competing teams. As many as 21,579 vehicles underwent security screening to ensure the safety of tournament participants at 37 hotels, 36 stadiums and 8 main stadiums, the official added.