The death of Elizabeth II of England, the monarch who has held the throne for the longest time, has been a historic event. Her funeral will be held this Monday and will become the greatest show in the world: 500 world leaders at a single point; a police device of more than 10,000 agents; and one global audience estimated at 4 billion people.
The Mayor of London Sadiq Khanhas assured Associated Press that Monday’s state funeral for Queen Elizabeth II is an “unprecedented” security challenge, with hundreds of thousands of people filling central London and a funeral guest list of 500 world leaders, kings, presidents, prime ministers and others.
“As a single event, this is bigger than the 2012 olympics. It’s bigger than the Platinum Jubilee weekend. And the range of officers, police personnel and everyone who supports the operation is truly immense,” he added.
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“Decades have passed since so many world leaders have been in one place”Khan has assured. In addition, the London mayor wanted to emphasize the importance of the security device in such an event. “There could be bad people who want to harm people. So we’re working incredibly hard to make sure this state funeral is as successful as possible.”
safety device
The commander of the Metropolitan Police, Stuart Cundy, has confirmed that the security device includes 10,000 police, 1,500 military and 142 members of the Royal Navy. It is also set to “be the largest global protection operation the Met Police has ever undertaken” as “hundreds of world leaders” will be in London, he said.
But this is only the most visible part of a security operation being carried out from a high-tech control center near Lambeth Bridge, near the British Parliament. Also, street drains and dumpsters are being searched and sealed daily. Likewise, there will be snipers on the rooftops, sniffer dogs, naval officers on the River Thames and mounted policemen. Officials from Britain’s foreign and domestic intelligence agencies (MI5 and MI6) are investigating any possible terrorist threats.
In addition, it has Temporary ban on flying drones over central Londonand Heathrow airport is canceling dozens of flights so that the noise of the planes does not disturb the funeral service.
The Civil Aviation Authority have placed airspace restrictions across central London following the death of Her Majesty, until the evening of 19 September.
The restrictions apply to all drone flying.
Please do not fly a drone in London. https://t.co/rngy27Mr82
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) September 18, 2022
As for presidents, prime ministers and royalty will meet offsite before being Bused to Westminster. Although an exception will be made for the President of the United States, Joe Bidenwho is expected to arrive in his armored limousine.
Another challenge is controlling the crowds that are expected to arrive and gather around Westminster Abbey and along the route that the coffin will travel after the funeral, past the Buckingham Palace until Hyde Park. From there he will be taken in a hearse some 20 miles to Windsor, where another 2,000 police officers will be on duty.
Finally, Elizabeth II will be buried in St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. with her husband, Philip of Edinburgh, who died last year at the age of 99.
Police have deployed more than 36 kilometers of barriers in central London to control the crowds. The agents prepare to control the stations, buses and trains.
Preparation, planning, and perfection.
The attention to detail and accuracy our Sailors, Soldiers and Aviators are demonstrating in preparation for Her Majesty The Queen’s funeral, is to honor their Commander-in-Chief for the last 70 years, one final time. pic.twitter.com/vltiB7jnwe
— Ministry of Defense ?? (@DefenceHQ) September 16, 2022
Possible television record
Coverage of the queen’s funeral will headline the Most-watched broadcast in British television history. Likewise, newspapers have also seen an unprecedented increase in sales due to those seeking commemorative copies of a historical event. However, the biggest event in decades will not provide a commercial profit for the media.
ITV has planned its largest outdoor broadcast to date, with all its channels simultaneously broadcasting live coverage and no advertising for the first time in history. Channel 4 it has also blocked ads on all its channels. The BBC-favorite for the British when it comes to following major events – it is expected to capture the majority of viewers.
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All of this means that the event’s total national reach could surpass that of two of the most-watched live television events in history: the England’s victory in the 1966 World Cup and the Diana’s funeralPrincess of Wales, in 1997.
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