France draws with Israel in high-security operation to reach Nations League quarterfinals with Italy

France and Italy qualified for the quarterfinal stage of the revamped Nations League on Thursday as England got its revenge on Greece ahead of the imminent arrival of Thomas Tuchel as coach.

France drew 0-0 with Israel in a match requiring a high-security operation in and around Paris, a week after violence erupted in Amsterdam in connection with Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv’s visit for a Europa League match. Around 150 Israel supporters were among a crowd of 16,611 inside the 80,000-capacity Stade de France and there was a brief scuffle between some fans at one point in the first half.

The draw was enough to secure France a top-two finish in its group along with Italy, which beat Belgium 1-0 away thanks to Sandro Tonali's 11th-minute goal. They advance to the quarterfinals in March, from which the lineup of the Final Four mini-tournament in June will be determined. Germany and Spain were the first two nations to qualify for the quarterfinals in October.

England won 3-0 in Athens thanks to strikes by Ollie Watkins and debutant Curtis Jones, either side of an own-goal, and that made amends for a humbling first loss to Greece last month at Wembley Stadium. England captain Harry Kane was left out of the team, with Watkins preferred up front, and came on as a second-half substitute.

England has one more match under interim coach Lee Carsley before Tuchel begins his tenure in January as the country's latest foreign-born manager.

Prolific Manchester City striker Erling Haaland was again among the scorers for Norway in its 4-1 win in Slovenia.

Soccer took a back seat to security for the France-Israel match, with Paris authorities having been on high alert after last week's incidents in Amsterdam where assaults on Maccabi fans sparked outrage and were widely condemned as antisemitic.

Some 4,000 police officers and security staff were deployed in and around the Stade de France, and the vast number of empty seats made for an eerie atmosphere at a match attended by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Israel’s national anthem was whistled by some fans and Israel players were jeered at times when they got the ball, but the visitors held firm for their first point in qualifying against a France team again lacking a cutting edge without Kylian Mbappé.

Israel goalkeeper Daniel Peretz saved well from Randal Kolo Muani, Warren Zaïre-Emery and Christopher Nkunku, while veteran midfielder N’Golo Kanté — France’s captain in the ongoing absence of Mbappé — dragged a shot wide.

“There’s frustration and also anger, because we didn’t play well.” France defender Jules Kounde said.

Italy moved three points clear of France atop Group 2 in League A ahead of the teams' meeting in Milan on Sunday that will determine their finishing positions.

Tonali tapped into an empty net from a cross from the right to earn Italy its fourth victory from five group games.

Belgium stayed in third place, three points ahead Israel. They meet on neutral territory in Hungary on Sunday, with Israel in the relegation spot and Belgium currently in line to face a two-legged promotion-relegation playoff with a runner-up from second-tier League B — potentially England or Greece.

A day after bemoaning the withdrawals of so many England players for the team's latest matches, Harry Kane was dropped to the bench against Greece with Carsley wanting to give Watkins a rare opportunity.

He took it by scoring in the seventh minute, turning in Noni Madueke's cross. Jude Bellingham hit the post before driving in a 78th-minute shot that also struck the goal frame, rebounded onto goalkeeper Odysseas Vlachodimos and went back over the line. Jones' deft back-flick clinched the win on the Liverpool midfielder's senior debut.

Haaland moved onto 19 goals for the season for club and country with one of Norway's strikes against Slovenia that kept the team tied on 10 points with Austria in their League B group and virtually guaranteed it being among the second seeds for the World Cup qualifying draw on Dec. 13.

Austria beat Kazakhstan 2-0.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Italy's Sandro Tonali, second left, is challenged by Belgium's Timothy Castagne, right, during the UEFA Nations League, group A2, soccer match between Belgium and Italy at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)

Italy celebrate after Italy's Sandro Tonali, second left, scored the opening goal during the UEFA Nations League, group A2, soccer match between Belgium and Italy at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)

England's Harry Kane gestures during the UEFA Nations League Group F soccer match between Greece and England at Olympic Stadium in Athens, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

England's Ollie Watkins celebrates after scoring his sides first goal during the UEFA Nations League Group F soccer match between Greece and England at Olympic Stadium in Athens, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

England's Ollie Watkins, center, shoots to score his sidesfirst goal past Ntinos Mavropanos of Greece, right, during the UEFA Nations League Group F soccer match between Greece and England at Olympic Stadium in Athens, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

England's Jude Bellingham celebrates after the UEFA Nations League Group F soccer match between Greece and England at Olympic Stadium in Athens, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

France's coach Didier Deschamps reacts during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

France's Ibrahim Konate reacts following the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Sea de de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Israel supporters react during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Sea de de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Israeli supporters arrive at the Stade de France stadium ahead of the Nations League soccer match France against Israel , Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024 in Saint-Denis, outside Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Fans argue on stands during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Players challenge for the ball during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Former French Presidents Nicolas Sarkozy, right, and Francois Hollande smile on the stands before the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Police officers watch spectators arriving ahead of the Nations League soccer match France against Israel outside the Stade de France stadium, Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024 in Saint-Denis, outside Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Fans argue on stands during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Israeli supporters display their national flag before the UEFA Nations League soccer match between France and Israel at the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis, outside Paris, Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

ATLANTA (AP) — Jail officials in Georgia's most populous county are violating the constitutional rights of people in their custody by failing to protect them from violence, using excessive force and holding them in filthy and unsafe conditions, U.S. Justice Department officials said Thursday.

They detailed “unconstitutional and illegal conditions” in Fulton County lockups in a lengthy report and suggested remedial actions. County officials said they have already started making changes to improve conditions for those in custody and that they look forward to working with the Justice Department to continue that work.

“Our investigation finds longstanding, unconstitutional, unlawful and dangerous conditions that jeopardize the lives and well-being of the people held there,” Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general for civil rights, said at a news conference in Atlanta.

The report resulted from a federal investigation launched in July 2023 to examine living conditions, access to medical and mental health care, use of excessive force by staff, and conditions that may give rise to violence between people held in jails in the county, which includes most of Atlanta.

Federal authorities cited the September 2022 death of 35-year-old Lashawn Thompson in a bedbug-infested cell in the Fulton County Jail’s psychiatric wing, noting that an independent autopsy conducted at his family’s request found that he died of severe neglect. Photos released by attorneys for Thompson’s family showed that his body was covered in insects and that his cell was filthy and full of garbage.

“We cannot turn a blind eye to the inhumane, violent and hazardous conditions that people are subjected to inside the Fulton County Jail,” Clarke said. “Detention in the Fulton County Jail has amounted to a death sentence for dozens of people who have been murdered or who've died as a result of the atrocious conditions inside the facility.”

Assaults and stabbings with “shanks” are “a feature of life" at the jail, the report states, noting that there were 1,054 assaults and 314 stabbings in 2023. In some cases, officers have allowed or initiated the violence, and many attacks go unreported or are not properly documented.

Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat, who took office in 2021 and was reelected last week, has consistently raised concerns about overcrowding, dilapidated infrastructure and staffing shortages at county facilities. He has pushed county leaders to build a new jail, which they have so far been unwilling to do, but he said he appreciates the Board of Commissioners approving up to $300 million to make improvements to the current jail.

Although county leaders and the sheriff's office are aware of the violence and have publicly spoken out against it, “they have failed to take adequate action to address the crisis," according to the report.

Labat and Board of Commissioners Chairman Robb Pitts said they have already been working together in recent months to address both structural and programming concerns.

“I think today is a time of us looking forward and not backwards,” Pitts said. “How do we accomplish some of the things that have been pointed out in the study.”

Clarke said the Justice Department is ready to work with the county.

“I'm hopeful at the end of the day that Fulton County can put in place the reforms, measures and best practices necessary so that it might stand as a model for other institutions across the country,” she said.

Ryan Buchanan, the U.S. attorney in Atlanta, said the problems affect a large percentage of the jail population. An overwhelming majority of those in custody are in pretrial detention and have not been convicted of a crime.

“The most obvious casualties of the civil rights violations occurring in the jail are those who leave the jail in body bags,” he said. “But our investigation has revealed hundreds more injured, traumatized and dehumanized people, all of whom are just as deserving of the protections of the Constitution as all of us in this room.”

The “crisis of violence” — including stabbings, sexual assaults and killings — in the Fulton County Jail is due in part to a lack of an effective classification system, resulting in a extremely violent people and gang members being housed with vulnerable and low-risk people, he said.

Vulnerable populations, including people who are gay, transgender, young or who have serious mental illness, are particularly at risk from the violence, which causes physical injury and long-lasting trauma, the report says.

Jail officers “have a pattern or practice of using excessive force” against people in county custody, the report says. Officers do not receive adequate training and guidance on the use of force, they use Tasers too frequently and in “an unreasonable, unsafe manner,” and staff who use excessive force are not consistently disciplined, it states.

Fulton County has a main jail and three annexes, and investigators found that the main jail is hazardous and unsanitary, citing flooding from broken toilets and sinks, infestations of cockroaches and rodents, and filthy cells with dangerous exposed wires. There isn't enough food for detainees and the distribution services are unsanitary, the report says. That leaves detainees exposed to pest infestation, malnourishment and other harms, investigators contend.

People held in Fulton County custody receive inadequate medical and mental health care in violation of their constitutional rights, leaving them open to risk of injury, serious illness, pain and suffering, mental health decline and death, the report states.

People with serious mental illness are routinely held in restrictive housing that exposes them to risk of serious harm, including self-injury, physical decline and acute mental illness, the report says.

The jurisdiction of the juvenile justice system in Georgia ends at age 16, so 17-year-olds are housed in county jails. They are held in restrictive housing with little time outside of their cells, leaving them susceptible to the onset of mental illness, depression and an increased risk of suicide, the report says.

Included in the report are 11 pages of “minimum remedial measures” that jail officials should implement. It ends with a warning that federal authorities could take legal action if concerns are not sufficiently addressed.

A Georgia state Senate committee formed last year to examine jail conditions in Fulton County concluded in August that county officials needed to do more to work together to address problems at the jail. It also called on the city of Atlanta to hand over all of its former jail to the county to house prisoners.

FILE - The Fulton County Jail is shown, April 11, 2023, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Kate Brumback, File)