Terrorists are said to be planning a highly deadly attack at the upcoming VJ Day parade in London.
Britain’s M15 Security Service and police are reportedly in a “race against time” to stop Islamic State jihadis from targeting England’s Queen Elizabeth and other members of the Royal Family at a parade in London next Saturday.
According to a report in British newspaper The Daily Mail on Saturday, intelligence forces have determined that terrorists in Syria are orchestrating a three-pronged attack at London’s annual VJ Day — Victory in Japan — parade that commemorates the end of World War II.
Security sources identified the queen as the main target, though other royal family members are said to be possible targets as well, including Prince Charles. The procession is expected to be attended by British Prime Minister David Cameron, as well as a number of dignitaries, soldiers, military veterans and thousands of civilian parade-goers.
Similar to the 2013 Boston Marathon attack, terrorists reportedly are planning to use a pressure cooker bomb to carry out the attack.
The report publicized a number of high-profile spots where explosions are being planned, such as at St. Martin-in-the-Fields church in London’s Trafalgar Square, before moving on to the Field Marshal Slim statue, the site of a second planned explosion. The procession ends at Westminister Abbey, where terrorists are supposedly planning a third blast.
This plot was uncovered following calls by Islamic State encouraging its extremist Muslim members to stay carry out deadly terror attacks on their home turf, rather than joining the many others who have fled to Syria and Iraq in recent years to join terror ranks.
So far, police have not announced if any arrests were made and security forces are keeping an eye on the plot.
Security policies for the parade are urgently being reviewed as well, though changes in the schedule were not yet made.
Queen Elizabeth indicated that she still plans to attend the event in order “to honor the fallen.”
The deadliest terror attack in recent British history was the 7/7 terror attacks on July 7, 2005, when four men affiliated with al-Qaida detonated four explosions – three on Underground trains and one on a bus, killing themselves and 52 passengers, and wounding around 700 people.