Visit of Pope Leo XIV to Paris: journey in a popemobile with exceptional security

A few kilometers in the heart of Paris, music groups every 100 meters and thousands of faithful expected behind the barriers. On Friday, September 25, Pope Leo After passing through the Elysée and a visit to the UNESCO headquarters, the sovereign pontiff plans to travel in contact with the public before joining the square in front of Notre-Dame de Paris.

The procession must set off around 4 p.m. from the Notre-Dame-des-Champs church, in the 6th arrondissement of the capital, reveals France Télévisions. The popemobile will then take Boulevard du Montparnasse, then Boulevard Saint-Michel, to Place Saint-Michel. The Pope will then be transferred, off camera, to the square in front of Notre-Dame.

Throughout the route, the objective is to give the crossing the feel of a popular festival. Approximately every 100 meters, musical groups must animate the passage of the head of the Catholic Church. Scouts, parishes and musical groups were notably solicited, while French and Vatican flags will be distributed to the public.

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Twenty-three access points, with police checks, are planned to join the route. This Parisian sequence is part of a visit which should attract considerable crowds. On Friday evening, the Pope is expected at the Stade de France for a vigil with 80,000 people. On Saturday, a mass is organized in the Concorde-Champs-Elysées space. According to the Minister of the Interior, Laurent Nuñez, 500,000 people are expected for this event.

Up to 15,000 members of the police mobilized

The authorities are preparing an “exceptional security system”, the minister told the newspaper La Croix. At the height of the visit, Friday and Saturday, “15,000 members of law enforcement and soldiers from Operation Sentinel” will be mobilized. “Around 14,000 will be deployed to Paris.”

Security will be particularly tight when traveling by popemobile. Leo XIV will be surrounded by a "protective bubble of police officers on foot", responsible for "detecting any abnormal movement of the crowd", according to the minister. However, no specific threat has been “identified at this stage”.