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April 17, 2013

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Security tightens at major events around the world

WITH more than 30 marathons being held this weekend alone and major events on the horizon, officials around the world are tightening security in the wake of the fatal bomb blasts that shook Boston's race.

Britain was making last-minute preparations for former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's funeral at St Paul's Cathedral today. It is being attended by hundreds of diplomats and dignitaries, including the Queen and Prince Harry.

More than 37,000 runners will be at Sunday's London Marathon. Other marathons are also being held this weekend in countries across Europe, in Japan, South Africa and around the United States.

London officials said the race would go on as planned but security was being evaluated.

Russian sports officials said yesterday that they will beef up security in preparation for the Winter Olympics and other events.

Police in major US cities were monitoring landmarks, government buildings, transit hubs and sporting events. Law enforcement agencies urged the public to report any suspicious activities.

"No matter how many days, months or years pass without a major terrorist attack, it only takes one such attack to bring us back to the cruel reality," Interpol chief Ron Noble said.

Although security has been increased at some US and European landmarks, overall terror threat levels have remained unchanged - in contrast to other recent bombings and thwarted attacks in which terror threat levels were raised and travel advisories put in place.

"The (Boston) attacks mean that we will be assessing our security protocols," said a British security official. "There is some initial information coming out ... but it is too early to draw any conclusions. There doesn't appear at this point, however, to be a wider threat."

Security is particularly tight for the events in Britain, which has been at the heart of several terror attacks in the past decade, including suicide bombings in 2005 that killed 52 people. Several international terror plots have also been traced back to suspects in Britain.

At the White House in Washington, the Secret Service expanded its security perimeter after the attacks, shutting down Pennsylvania Avenue.



 

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