40,000 police officers will be sent to protect tourist hotspots in Spain amid fears of a summer terror attack
- ‘Operation Summer’ designed to protect airports, ports, hotels and beaches
- 40,000 additional officers will be deployed from July 1 until at least August 31
- One of their main tasks will be protecting areas from a terrorist attack
- ISIS has vowed to carry out attacks overseas following collapse of its ‘caliphate’
Spain will deploy more than 40,000 extra police officers around tourist hotspots this summer amid fears of fresh terror attacks in Europe.
Officers from the national police and civil guard will take to the streets from July 1 until at least August 31 as part of Operation Summer, Spanish media reports.
The police will be stationed in ‘areas of high tourist concentration’ such as airports, ports, beaches, hotels and campsites.
22,700 officers from the national police and 22,000 from the civil guard will be deployed at tourist sites around Spain this summer to deter terror attacks (file image)
The affected areas include Andalusia, Asturias, Canary Islands, Cantabria, Galicia, Madrid, Murcia and Valencia.
The Balearic Islands will also have additional police stationed there, who will remain in their posts until September 30.
Officers will have six key duties, according to Spanish media, one of which is ‘obtaining information that may lead to the detection of a potential attack of a terrorist nature’ – with a particular focus on jihadi terrorism.
Other measures include providing a permanent police presence at shows and events where tourists will gather.
The force will be comprised of 22,700 officers from the national police and 22,000 from the civil guard.
It comes after ISIS vowed to use cells to carry out attacks overseas following the destruction of its so-called caliphate in Iraq and Syria earlier this year.
Extra officers will take to the streets from July 1 until at least August 31, though will be stationed in the Balearic Islands up to the end of September (file image)
The British Foreign Office has warned that terrorist attacks in Spain are ‘likely’, adding: ‘Attacks could be indiscriminate including in places visited by foreigners.
‘The Spanish authorities take measures to protect visitors but you should be vigilant and follow the instructions of the local authorities.’
Just last week, ISIS-affiliated media outlets issued threats against a number of targets in Spain including Barcelona’s famous Sagrada Familia cathedral.
In March this year, a hard drive was uncovered on the dead body of a suspected ISIS militant in the Middle East containing messages outlining plans for a European offshoot to carry out attacks.
In the messages, a senior militant calling himself Abu Taher al-Tajiki requested permission to set up a ‘Bureau of Foreign Relations for the Department of Operations in Europe’.
Tajiki claimed to be in contact with ‘individuals who want to work in areas far away from the Islamic State’ to carry out attacks overseas.