Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour The concerts in London will go ahead as scheduled after the failed terrorist plot caused the pop star’s concerts in Austria to be cancelled.
London’s Metropolitan Police said there was no indication of any connection to planned attacks in the country. Swift is scheduled to take the stage at Wembley Stadium for a second round of shows starting Aug. 15. The “Tortured Poets Department” singer will perform five shows in London.
However, one security expert told Fox News Digital that there was likely an “extra layer of security” in light of the failed terrorist attack plan.
Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour will continue in London after three shows in Vienna were cancelled. (Thomas Niedermueller/Getty Images for TAS24/TAS Rights Management)
“Taylor Swift’s team is likely implementing additional layers of security to ensure her own safety, as well as the safety of her fans and the general public,” said Julian Moreau, senior vice president and regional security director for International SOS. ,While it is not known what the exact measures may be, we can assume they may include increasing the number of security personnel, limiting public interactions and re-evaluating travel routes. This will also include ensuring there is extra security in and around the venues where she will be performing for the rest of her tour.”
Swift’s three Vienna concerts were canceled after authorities arrested a 17-year-old and a 19-year-old man on Wednesday for allegedly plotting a terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium. An 18-year-old Iraqi man was arrested on Thursday.
Police have questioned a 15-year-old boy but he has not been named as a suspect.
The screen shows a photo of a man who has been arrested in connection with an alleged terrorist plot to target Taylor Swift’s concert in Vienna. (Roland Schlager/APA/AFP via Getty Images)
At least one suspect confessed that he wanted to “murder as many people as possible outside the concert venue.”
Bomb-making materials were recovered from the home of at least one teenager.
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Organisers have cancelled three stops of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Vienna following the arrest of two teenagers who were allegedly planning a terrorist attack. (Fernando Leon/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
Since Swift is heading to London, in addition to keeping the venue and fans safe, Swift will likely have a high level of personal security as well.
“In Ms. Swift’s case, our understanding is that she has a full-time, very experienced head of security, and she travels with an executive protection team, which will be augmented with additional agents based on profile and itinerary, or, as in this instance, due to a credible and specific threat,” Morrow said. “In addition, her personal security team will liaise closely with venue security personnel, and if she is traveling to a public area, with law enforcement personnel.”
“Often, in extremely dangerous situations, the three work together to ensure the safety of the public as well as the high-profile individual.”
WATCH: Terror threat over Taylor Swift’s show ‘should be taken seriously’
Bill Roggio, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News that attacks like the one at Swift’s concert aim to “disrupt our way of life.”
“It’s been a while since there’s been a major attack by the Islamic State or al-Qaeda,” the Army veteran said, but still, it only takes one time. “And that creates fear. It disrupts our way of life.”
Roggio said it is difficult to enter venues with weapons, allowing terrorists to launch attacks outside the grounds — just as the teens reportedly planned to do.
“This shows that these groups are adapting, and they have been adapting for decades,” he said. “When we increase our security, they do everything they can to find a weakness, and … that is the weakness, people gathering outside the concert. They can gather in the parking lot. When the Islamic State didn’t have weapons, they used knives or drove trucks into the crowd.”
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Taylor Swift will conclude the European leg of her Eras Tour on August 20 in London. (Buda Mendes/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
Swift revealed in a 2019 interview that concert violence was her “biggest fear” Ellie magazine, and he referred to Manchester Arena bombing On May 22, 2017, a suicide bombing at the end of an Ariana Grande concert killed 22 people and injured hundreds more.
“After the Manchester Arena bombing and the Vegas concert shooting, I was absolutely terrified to go on tour this time because I didn’t know how we were going to keep 3 million fans safe over seven months,” Swift said ahead of the Lover Fest Tour, which was later canceled due to COVID. “A lot of planning, expense and effort was put into keeping my fans safe.”
“My fear of violence has carried over into my personal life,” she continued. “I carry QuikClot army-grade bandage dressings for gunshot or knife wounds. Websites and tabloids have taken it upon themselves to post every home address I’ve ever seen online. There are a lot of stalkers trying to break into your home and you start to prepare for the worst. Every day I try to remind myself of the good in the world, the love I’ve seen and the faith I have in humanity. We have to live bravely to feel truly alive, and that means not being controlled by our greatest fears.”
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Taylor Swift performed at the stadium for thousands of people each night during her sixth world tour, the Eras Tour. (Hector Vivas)
Unfortunately, it seems Swift’s fears are justified. During a stopover in Germany Era TravelA 34-year-old man was taken into custody and held for three nights while Swift was in the city.
Police said in a statement that the suspected stalker had tickets to Swift’s concert at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen on July 17. The man was checked, but a risk could not be ruled out, leading to his detention during an entry check at the arena.
The alleged stalker made threats against Swift and her boyfriend. NFL Star Travis Kelceon social media. Organisers of the Germany leg of the Eras Tour reported the threats to police.
Police said there was no threat to Swift or the audience. The concert, attended by about 60,000 people, went on peacefully.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
