Berlin, scene of deadly Christmas market attack weeks ago, Paris, Brussels and New York among cities stepping up measures
The Guardian, 31 December 2016 – Major western cities are tightening security for New Year’s Eve celebrations amid continuing terrorism fears, with authorities particularly concerned about a repeat of this year’s deadly truck attacks in Germany and France.
“Every measure is being taken to prevent a possible attack,” said police spokesman Thomas Neuendorf in Berlin, where concrete blocks and armored cars will prevent all but carefully controlled pedestrian access to Pariser Platz, the square in front of Brandenburg Gate that is the traditional site for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Twelve people died and more than 50 were injured in the German capital on 19 December when a hijacked truck was driven into Christmas market crowds.
The suspected perpetrator, Anis Amri, a Tunisian national, fled and was eventually shot dead by police in Italy.
The attack, months after a similar atrocity in Nice on Bastille Day killed 86 people and wounded more than 400, underscored the threat to large holiday crowds in open spaces from a low-tech but devastating type of terrorist attack that can be carried out by one person.
Germany has deployed about 1,700 officers in and around Pariser Platz, near Brandenburg Gate, in Berlin.
Neuendorf said about 1,700 officers, some carrying submachine guns, would be stationed in and around the square in an “unprecedented” security operation. Glass bottles and fireworks will be banned and revelers subjected to bag searches and video surveillance.
Cologne has also dramatically stepped up security, increasing police numbers fivefold and installing new CCTV cameras since hundreds of women were robbed outside the central train station by suspects mainly of North African and Arab appearance on New Year’s Eve 2015.
Paris has again canceled its traditional firework display at the Eiffel Tower – as it did after the November 2015 terror attacks in which 130 people died – but the French capital expects up to 600,000 people on the Champs-Élysées to watch a light show at the Arc de Triomphe and see in 2017.
Amid tight security, however, more than 50 surrounding streets will be closed to traffic, including parked cars, from 6.30pm on Saturday, many access roads will be sealed off with concrete barriers or heavy vehicles, and strict bans on fireworks and glass bottles will be enforced, Paris city hall said.
The French interior minister, Bruno Le Roux, earlier said more than 90,000 police and soldiers would be on duty around the country over the holiday period.
Three men were arrested near Toulouse on Wednesday on suspicion of planning New Year’s Eve terror attacks.
Brussels, where suicide bombers killed 32 people and injured more than 300 in March, also canceled its New Year’s Eve fireworks display in 2015 after the discovery of a terror plot but decided to go ahead this year with “significantly enhanced” security.
A Belgian soldier signals to a passing horse-drawn carriage while patrolling the streets of Brussels.
City hall said two metro stations and all but five access roads leading to the party strip between Place de la Bourse and Place de Brouckère would be closed, with strict security checks on everyone entering the zone.
In Madrid, heavy vehicles will be used to block potential truck attacks on New Year’s Eve crowds in the central square Puerta del Sol, with an extra 1,600 police on duty. Trucks weighing more than 3.5 tons have been banned from areas holding traditional Three Kings parades on 5 January.
In Italy, where fears of attacks were heightened last week by Amri’s killing in the suburbs of Milan, the interior ministry said it had deported a Tunisian national who was “set to strike” Italy.
The prime minister, Paolo Gentiloni, has said there is no evidence the Berlin attacker was part of a terrorist network in Italy, but police have increased their presence at possible targets and tourist areas in Rome, and some trucks and buses are forbidden from entering the city center.
Security concerns are not confined to continental Europe. In London, armed police will join about 3,000 officers on the streets as hundreds of thousands of people come to watch the official fireworks display by the river Thames.
European cities ramp up security for New Year
In New York, police chief Carlos Gomez said 65 heavy rubbish and salting trucks loaded with sand would be stationed around the perimeter of Times Square – where up to 2 million people are expected to gather – as well as 100 lighter “blocker trucks” nearby. About 7,000 police will be on duty.
“Due to the terrorist attacks in Nice, France, and in Berlin, we’ve enhanced our security measures,” Gomez said.
In Sydney, an extra 2,000 police officers will be deployed for the waterfront celebrate
