Security operations for the Queen’s funeral today were the ‘biggest in British history’.
Former counter-terrorism police chief Nick Aldworth told the PA news agency: “It’s probably the biggest operation that we’re likely to mount in the UK.”
At least 10,000 police officers and 1,500 soldiers formed a six-mile wide ring of steel around central London for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth ll.
Specialist firearms were set up around Westminster Abbey, and 23-miles of barriers were put up to control crowds and keep key areas secure, as well as police with sniffer dogs on duty to check people passing by.
Many roads have been shut to traffic, and a cordon of concrete blocks, blocking off all roads up to 600 yards away, were set up by police at 6am around the Royal Hospital Chelsea, where the world leaders arrived before setting off to Westminster Abbey for the funeral service.
Two rows of bollards were stretched across the road, and a line of portable anti-terror barricades designed to be capable of stopping a bomb-laden truck.
Soldiers and armed officers lined the streets, with snipers set up on rooftops. Helicopters and CCTV were also used to help commanders watch crowds from the sky.
A no-fly zone was also implemented over the funeral and London procession.
Around 2,300 police officers oversaw the Queen’s final journey from Westminster Abbey to Windsor Castle today, with one thousand officers and military personnel lining the route from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch, where the Queen’s coffin was transported from the funeral service by gun carriage.
Mourners arriving in London to catch a glimpse of the Queen’s coffin were subject to searches and scanning through weapons arches before they arrived at Windsor Castle.
Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner, Stuart Cundy, who is in charge of the operation in the capital, said 34 arrests have been made in London linked to the Queen’s death and events.
He said, with over one million people expected to be in London to mourn the Queen, the Met would use ‘all tools and tactics available’ to protect the Queen’s coffin and the Royal Family, and world leaders in attendance at the funeral.
Hundreds of thousands of mourners queued up to see the Queen lying in state at Westminster Hall.
The queue, which stretched for several miles, was closed to new entrants permanently at around 5pm last night after reaching full capacity.
The late Queen’s funeral was held today at Westminster Abbey, with 2,000 guests attending, including heads of state, key workers and volunteers, and famous faces including David Attenborough and Bear Grylls.
The Queen died last Thursday at the age of 96.
