“The day of greatest effort we will have 2,600 soldiers for the Fatima operation,” said the general commander about the operation that the GNR is mounting for WYD, which runs from July 22 to August 7.
The GNR announced this Friday that it will have the support of police officers from France, Spain and Italy on World Youth Day, which will have 2,600 mobilized elements on the day of “greatest effort”, when Pope Francis visits Fatima.
The operation launched by the National Republican Guard on the occasion of World Youth Day (WYD), which is celebrated in Lisbon the first week of August and will be attended by the leader of the Catholic Church, has been explained to journalists by the general commander of the GNR, José Santos Correia, who on Friday afternoon visited the headquarters of the WYD Local Organizing Committee (COL), in Beato.
“The day of greatest effort we will have 2,600 soldiers for the operation in Fatima”said the General Commander of the GNR, explaining that every day there are a certain number of soldiers who orient themselves towards the WYD operation in various parts of the country, which reaches its peak when the Pope visits Fatima on August 5.
The operation that prepares the GNR for WYD, which will take place from July 22 to August 7It is in view of the largest event held in Portugal, taking into account the number of people.
José Santos Correia stressed that this operation is being considered in several areas, namely, the number of people who will enter the country by land, the safety of citizens because there will be “great pressure in many places” and the great flow of people to use roads.
“The GNR decided to implement four operationsa first operation refers to what is the selective control of borders in the terms that the Government will decide, a second operation associated with the Fatima operation, which will be the object of great popular pressure, and an operation oriented to the security of the people who are going to circulate on the tracks,” he said.
For this WYD operation, the GNR will have the support of soldiers from similar forces, specifically for visibility and proximity patrol missions, so the corporation will have the support of soldiers from France, Spain, Italy and other countries.
José Santos Correia did not mention the number of soldiers from other countries involved, maintaining that it is “in a definition phase.” One of the works that will be carried out jointly with other forces is the selective control on the land border with Spain.
During WYD week, air and sea border controls will be restored, but they will not be closed, as happened during the states of emergency decreed during the covid-19 pandemic period.
“This work with the counterparts is done in depth and planning has to start beyond Spain,” he said, stressing that the criteria for the type of border control are still awaiting a decision by the Government.
“The rule is to carry out operations continuously, we will allocate resources according to needs. For now, the plan foresees a daily number of military troops coming from various parts of the country for the operation in Fatima, ”he said, also noting that the GNR will be responsible for access to Lisbon.
The general commander of the GNR considered that the operation in Fatima will be the most difficult, since “where there is a greater concentration of people it is always more complicated”, but the corporation has been carrying out this surveillance for many years and has learned lessons from other visits. of the Pope.
José Santos Correia also said that the means that the GNR has allocated to the forest fires will not be diverted to this WYD operation.
Considered the largest event of the Catholic Church, WYD will take place between August 1 and 6 in Lisbon, with an expectation of around 1.5 million people.
This year’s edition will be attended by Pope Francis, who will be in Portugal between August 2 and 6. WYD in Lisbon was originally scheduled for 2022, but was postponed due to the covid-19 pandemic.
Source: Observadora
