Learning from the mistakes of the US Secret Service in the aftermath of the assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump, India’s internal intelligence agency has asked all security forces, including central armed police forces, guarding VVIPs to neutralise a threat without delay.
A senior official told News18 that there should be minimum persons authorised within proximity of VVIPs and there should be no crowding around them. Also, security personnel should be positioned in a way that they have 360-degree observation at all times for faster detection of suspicious activity, the official said.
The official further said during an assessment of Trump’s security, it was learnt that the threat was not neutralised in time and proper sanitisation of the area was lacking. “Former US president Donald Trump narrowly escaped an assassination bid. While he was addressing an election rally, the assailant managed to climb over the roof of an adjacent building and fired multiple shots from a rifle towards the dais with a bullet hitting Trump’s right ear. Trump immediately ducked behind the lectern and Secret Service agents rushed to the stage, providing him with body cover and later whisked him away,” said a top official aware of the development.
The official said Indian security forces have been told that the proximate area should have minimum authorised security personnel and there should be no crowding around the dignitary. The venue should be put through comprehensive physical, visual and technical checks followed by deployment of security personnel.
The area up to a sufficient depth around the venue should be secured and all high-rise features as well as other vantage points in the vicinity – with a direct line of sight of the dignitary – should be sanitised and dominated, the official said.
“We have asked to conduct drills to counter possible contingency situations, or eventualities should be formulated and rehearsed. These drills should include providing immediate cover to the dignitary, rapid threat neutralisation and evacuation to a safe location or hospital in the shortest time. The PSOs (personal security officer) should always remain alive to the situation, be vigilant and quick in sensing and responding to a threat. They should be positioned in such a manner to have 360-degree observation to detect any threatening movement/activity,” the official said.
“International assassination incidents underline the vulnerabilities of high-risk dignitaries to various threats during public interface, including rallies, corner meetings, and roadshows. There should be focus on physical security measures, technical surveillance and contingency drills as well as on the role of personal security officer,” the official added.
In the most recent case of a major assassination, Japan’s longest serving PM Shinzo Abe was shot dead on July 8, 2022, from close quarters by a man who used a home-made shotgun. Abe was addressing a corner public meeting in Nara city.
Apart from the attempt on Trump’s life, seven major assassination bids have recently taken place, including on former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan and former vice-president of Argentina, Christina Fernandez. In Khan’s case from November 3, 2022, he was fired upon and suffered a bullet injury. Fernandez escaped an assassination bid on September 1, 2022, when a man unsuccessfully tried to fire a loaded pistol close to her head while she was surrounded by her supporters outside her house in Buenos Aires.
“During an election campaigning speech of former PM of Japan, Fumio Kishida at fishing port Saikazaki Wakayama on April 15, 2023, a man from the crowd hurled a smoke bomb towards him. Fernando Villavicencio, one of the candidates for the presidency of Ecuador, was shot dead on August 9 last year in Quito as he rode a police pickup vehicle after holding a public rally. The assailant climbed the vehicle from the opposite site and shot him through the window. Slovak PM Robert Fico suffered life-threatening injuries when he was shot in an attempted assassination on May 15 this year during a public event in the central town of Handlova,” the official said.
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