With scores of foreign delegations expected to travel to the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis on Saturday, Italian authorities will oversee a complex security operation.
Police are currently patrolling the streets around the Vatican as well as underground stations and the stretch of the River Tiber near Via della Conciliazione, the main street leading to St Peter’s Square.
Security mechanisms including anti-drone weapons, a no-fly zone patrolled by fighter jets, and sophisticated jamming technologies are being used across Rome and in the skies above the Italian capital, according to reports in Italian media.
The body of Pope Francis was moved on Wednesday morning to St Peter’s Basilica for three days of public mourning for an Argentine pontiff remembered for his humble style, concern for the poor and insistent prayers for peace.
The public viewing is largely for ordinary Catholics to grieve the pontiff, who died on Easter Monday at the age of 88 after suffering a stroke.
St Peter’s Basilica will be kept open until midnight on Wednesday and Thursday to allow the faithful to mourn. The public mourning period will end on Friday at 7 pm local time.
US President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy are among the various world leaders who will attend the funeral.
Cardinals met at the Vatican on Tuesday to schedule Francis’ funeral and burial, plan the conclave to elect his successor and make other decisions about running the Catholic Church.
Video editor • Rory Elliott Armstrong
