Portugal: Forces from four countries to police pilgrimage to Fatima 12-13 May

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Portugal: Forces from four countries to police pilgrimage to Fatima 12-13 May

7:54 CAT | 12 May 2025

File photo: CNN Portugal

he security apparatus for the largest and most significant pilgrimage of the year to the Shrine of Fatima in central Portugal on 12 and 13 May, where the surrounding airspace will be closed, is made up of around 240 military personnel, the National Republican Guard announced on Friday.

At a press conference at the Shrine of Fatima on the ‘Safe Pilgrimage 2025’ operation, Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Canatário, spokesman for the Republican Guard (GNR), explained that on each of the days there will be around 200 members of this security force, plus 40 from the ‘G4 POLARIS’ initiative.

This initiative, by military police forces from four countries (Portugal, Spain, France and Italy), allows its members who have finished their training and are already included in the ranks to complement their training, in this case in the operation that the GNR will be carrying out in Fátima.

Operation ‘Safe Pilgrimage 2025’ began on the 3rd and ends on Tuesday 13th.

According to Carlos Canatário, in the first phase, until Sunday, the priority is “the safety of the thousands of pilgrims” who are travelling on foot to Fátima, “often on roads without verges”.

In the second phase, on Monday and Tuesday, the GNR “will endeavour to guarantee the safety of all those visiting Fátima and all those taking part in the religious celebrations”.

The GNR spokesman emphasised that the policing system is adequate, with various police powers, “with the aim of welcoming the pilgrims, maintaining public order and tranquillity, ensuring the smooth flow of road traffic at the accesses and guaranteeing the safety of the whole event”.

Traffic, intervention, community policing, criminal investigation, video surveillance, explosive device deactivation, cynotechnics, public order, including anti-drone capability, horseback units and ‘Tourist Support Patrol’ patrols, are among the specialised resources deployed for the pilgrimage.

Carlos Canatário guaranteed that the focus is on preventive action.

“Our main objective is to ensure that problems don’t occur, to try to anticipate them. We are, however, prepared to respond to any situation that may occur that could jeopardise the safety of this event,” he assured.

The spokesman said that there will be several Tourist Support Patrols in the vicinity of the shrine to support pilgrims, as well as others, including on horseback, to prevent or detect criminal offences, “namely theft from inside vehicles, theft by pickpockets and possible scams”.

“We will also have unmanned aircraft, surveillance drones, as well as anti-drone capabilities, which make it possible to detect and disable unauthorised drones,” he warned, stressing that there will be a ban on use of the airspace in the area around the shrine during the pilgrimage.

Members of the Spanish and French counterparts (Guardia Civil and Gendarmerie, respectively) will also be included in the operation, in order to “provide closer support to pilgrims coming from those two countries”, he said.

The commander of the Santarém Territorial Command and commander of this operation, Colonel Duarte da Graça, stressed that the GNR’s security apparatus is “ready to welcome people, all those who had to come”, explaining that there are 15 contingency plans ready to be implemented.

Major João Moderno, commander of the Tomar Territorial Detachment, revealed that the GNR will have a mobile post next to the Basilica of the Holy Trinity and called for people to follow the GNR’s social networks, which will provide, for example, the capacity of the car parks in Fátima.

The pilgrimage on 12 and 13 May will be presided over by Brazilian Cardinal Jaime Spengler.

Created a cardinal by Pope Francis, Jaime Spengler was at the conclave that elected US cardinal Robert Francis Prevost leader of the Catholic Church on Thursday.

Source: Lusa