The city and the canton have increased their level of vigilance. The police are looking for four suspects in connection with the Paris attacks.
Police in Geneva are « actively looking for » people linked to the jihadist movement, whose alert was provided to them on Wednesday, and the level of alert has been raised, the Geneva Department of Security announced on Thursday. The newspaper La Tribune de Genève also claims that two other people are also wanted, who entered Swiss territory with a utility vehicle registered in Belgium overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
After France and Belgium, it is Switzerland’s turn to be at the center of the investigation into the November 13 attacks in Paris. The level of vigilance was raised in Geneva where investigations are carried out in connection with the Paris attacks. According to the Geneva Department of Security, the Geneva police « actively search » for suspects.
The investigations are carried out in close collaboration with national and international services. Additional police forces have been deployed to the field in order to locate and arrest several suspected individuals, who may be in Geneva.
According to the Reuters news agency, the Swiss authorities were looking for four men who are believed to be in Geneva. UN guards are on site with MP5 submachine guns according to Reuters.
In addition, the Geneva Department of Security said in a statement that additional police forces had been deployed.
For the moment, no official event has been canceled. « Additional patrols will supervise the Escalade procession on Sunday, » announced the communications officer. The historic procession, during which 800 people in period costumes parade, attracts several thousand spectators each year.
« We have gone from a vague threat to a specific threat, » said Swiss radio Emmanuelle Lo Verso, communications officer for the Geneva Department of Security.
In particular, additional police forces are deployed in sensitive places in Geneva, namely international organizations and the international airport.
As a reminder, the investigators are still looking for Salah Abdeslam, suspected of having fled after having taken part in the Paris attacks which left 130 dead and 352 injured.
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