The Paris Police Prefecture has prepared a security plan for Pope Leo XIV’s visit on September 25 and 26. On Friday, the first day of the trip, 14,000 police officers, gendarmes, and Sentinelle operation troops will be deployed, and on Saturday — 12,000.
Paris Police Prefect Patrick Forêt told AFP in an interview that 2,500 firefighter-sappers will be added to these forces on each of the two days. He emphasized that at this point “no threat has been identified”, and the task is to ensure maximum security with minimum inconvenience for residents.
Forêt expects particularly large crowds at street and mass events. In his assessment, on Saturday around 500,000 people will gather on the Champs-Élysées and Place de la Concorde, up to 250,000 — along the papal motorcade route on Friday, and 80,000 young people — at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis north of Paris for an evening vigil.
The Diocese of Paris is organizing access to the Paris events and has introduced QR codes for entry to zones on the Champs-Élysées and Place de la Concorde. According to the prefect, the route through the capital will be cordoned off, and passage through special checkpoints will take about an hour.
The diocese also clarified that on Friday around 16:00 the pope will travel by popemobile from Notre-Dame-des-Champs to Place Saint-Michel, after which he will celebrate vespers at Notre-Dame Cathedral. French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez spoke of a “security bubble” around the pontiff’s vehicle, which will be escorted by police on foot.
Forêt added that security will be deployed not only near the pope, but throughout the entire perimeter where the public will be, including with the participation of 60 to 80 mounted police and gendarmerie officers. He recalled that the prefecture has already ensured the security of major events, including the 2024 Olympic Games, and that other events will also take place in the region on those same days, including 16 Céline Dion concerts at Plenitude Arena in Nanterre, which begin on September 12.
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