Queen’s funeral: “unprecedented” security, London on high alert – BBC News

Watching the queues are police specialists specially trained to screen terrorist suspects trying to carry out terrorist attacks. At the main police surveillance center just south of Lambeth Bridge, officers were checking footage from a large number of roadside surveillance cameras. In addition, multiple cameras and mobile cameras have been installed in easily attackable places and in some blind spots for camera surveillance. In the crowd, specially trained security dogs were used to search for explosives and firearms.

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Thousands of police officers are on duty every day in central London, but the London Metropolitan Police point out that they have manpower support from police in other areas. They don’t want to live in London where people think the police have stopped their daily policing.

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In this arrangement, known as “mutual aid”, the Metropolitan Police have seconded hundreds of officers from outside London, some from Scotland and Northern Ireland. It was part of a longstanding arrangement of national mobilizations for the queen’s funeral, which included professional police officers in various fields. This week, for example, teams of explosives hounds from West Yorkshire and Lancashire patrolled the shopping center in front of Buckingham Palace.

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The Metropolitan Police would like to point out that while this is an unprecedented security operation, many of the specific police elements it contains are not alien to their officers.

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Threat of “lone wolf” attack.

“In all policing in London, we take into account the threat of terrorism, the threat of crime, while we take care of public safety,” said Stuart Cundy, Deputy Commissioner of the London Metropolitan Police. The event is unique but familiar to us and the police are well trained and experienced in controlling such a large event. “

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Security operations this week are on a scale comparable to the last London Olympics. But during the 2012 Olympics, the public spent a lot of time in the competition venues, where they had to queue to go through security. During the visit to Queen’s Coffin, the security check was set up only at the entrance to Westminster Hall, and the public had to queue to get there.

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Events similar to Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral were the funeral of the Queen’s mother, Queen Mother and Princess Diana, but this time a particularly large number of foreign heads of state came to London, complicating the organization of the Queen’s funeral.

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The threats are also different. Attacks known as “lone wolves”, using cars as weapons or using knives that can be bought in supermarkets, have occurred multiple times over the past decade.

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Foreign leaders began arriving in London on Friday. Among them are the Emperor Naruhito of Japan, kings and queens of some European countries, Tonga, Bhutan, Qatar and other countries, and presidents and prime ministers of dozens of countries. Among them, US President Biden and Israeli President Herzog are high-risk targets, and the security agencies of these countries have their own concerns.

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Stuart Candy said their police force were “used to working with teams in other countries of the world to protect dignitaries”.

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image source,EPA

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The leaders attended a reception hosted by the king at Buckingham Palace on Sunday evening. They will go to Westminster Abbey for their funeral on Monday morning. At first the police wanted all dignitaries to use the means provided by the British government to get to the funeral, but now this plan has been revised. President Biden can use his own bulletproof sedan nicknamed “The Beast” and other heads of state also use their own vehicles.

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A large area around Westminster Abbey will be put on high alert before the funeral. All the manholes on the road have been opened, checked and sealed. Each pole was opened and inspected. Anything that could hide a homemade explosive device needs to be checked. Explosive hunting dogs will enter Westminster and the surrounding area to conduct repeated searches.

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On the morning of the funeral, more police will be deployed to the top of nearby buildings to monitor. Police officers armed with guns were also secretly deployed to various parts of the security zone. At the same time, the British Army Special Forces are also on hold.

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Protests against the monarchy

Heads of state usually gather in particularly high-security settings, such as the headquarters of the United Nations General Assembly, but this time the queen’s funeral was a public event. It was an event for the public to experience and witness, and the British royal family also appeared before the public. This greatly increases the security difficulty.

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Former Metropolitan Police Commander Bob Broadhurst was in charge of security for the London Olympics. “Ceremonies and security are a couple of contradictions,” he said. “I don’t know if there is any other great power in the world that would allow that to happen.”

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Police have already faced an unexpected problem after the queen’s death, protests against the monarchy, with protesters chanting slogans like “(he) is not my king” at royal ceremonies. Several people were arrested and two were accused by the police.

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The National Council of Chiefs of Police has since published a guide for officers on how to balance the right to protest with the right to express pain and silence, although it has not been made public.

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Paul Powlesland was standing outside parliament with a blank piece of paper on Monday when officers approached him to record his profile. Powersland is a lawyer known for his protests outside parliament.

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After the new guidelines were released, Powersland and 30 other people returned outside parliament on Tuesday to see how police responded to their actions. He held up a sign that said “(He) is not my king”, which said he was treated differently this time. Nobody interfered with him.

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“It appears that media outrage and public backlash caused by the draconian actions of the police are now taking effect,” Powersland said.

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This demonstrates the need to remain sensitive even if the police conduct large and complex security operations.

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