Brazil braces for new wave of World Cup protests

With just days left to the World Cup, Brazilian officials brace for a fresh wave of public protests against the cost of hosting the major soccer event.

Brazilian officials said on Thursday that detailed plans were laid out to deal with anything from street protests to full-blown terrorist attacks.

State Secretary for major events Andrei Rodrigues told reporters they are “ready,” and that “When it comes to security one can never let one’s guard down …. We have defined 15 areas of intervention over the past year and a half and have drawn up protocols on how to respond in each case, based on repeated testing.”

Around 160,000 troops and police will be sent to the 12 host venues for the World Cup from June 12 to July 13, to maintain security.

Also around 20,000 private security agents will be present at the stadiums.

120 police officers from 40 countries will collaborate with Brazilian authorities to enforce security.

Brazil has seen near-daily protests over the multi-billion dollar costs of hosting the 2014 international soccer event, which will open on June 12 in Sao Paulo. Critics say the money being spent on the sports event should be invested in better health, education services, transportation, and housing for Brazilians.

Brazil is the biggest country with the largest economy in Latin America. However, the World Bank said that, in 2012, nearly 16 percent of Brazil’s population of 200 million lived below the poverty line.