In the lead up to the event, Qatar partnered with its international partners to exchange expertise in securing the event.
Qatar honoured several international security officials on Wednesday for their efforts in securing the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Doha, dubbed as the “safest” to take place in the tournament’s history.
In a ceremony, Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani recognised the efforts of “members of the security committee and the entities from the sisterly and brotherly countries”, Doha’s state news agency (QNA) reported.
Sheikh Mohammed thanked former prime minister and minister of interior, who also served as the chairman of the security committee, Sheikh Khalid Al-Thani.
The Qatari foreign minister also thanked the Minister of Interior and FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Security Operations Commander Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al-Thani.
“Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs also delivered a remark on this occasion in which he commended the members of the security committee and the participating entities from the sisterly and friendly countries and heads of the participating delegations in securing the world cup tournament,” QNA added.
The World Cup in Qatar, the first to ever take place in an Arab and Muslim country, has been widely deemed as “the safest” version of the tournament with the help of protective measures and intense security presence.
In the lead up to the event, Qatar partnered with its international partners, namely Turkey, the United States, the United Kingdom, Jordan, Morocco and Italy, among several others to exchange expertise in securing the event.
The countries had also dispatched their own personnel to the Gulf state to ensure the protection and safety of millions of football fans.
The World Cup’s security committee carried out exercises that saw the participation of 32,000 government security personnel and 17,000 personnel from the private sector.
In January, a FIFA director said that the future of public security at major events could be shaped by the ‘Middle Eastern security innovation’ used at the World Cup.
Speaking to Doha News during the tournament, fans said they felt “extremely” safe especially when compared to previous World Cups where they were “too afraid” to hold their belongings in their hands freely.
Fans also said they were not worried about wearing bags on their backs as they were content that pickpocketing would not occur in the Gulf nation.
