“Discreet but massive”: Police prepare for Norway’s biggest operation

About 3,500 police officers will take part in the operation for King Harald’s funeral on Wednesday, a deployment equal to roughly half of Norway’s armed police force.

At a briefing in central Oslo, Police Director Håkon Skulstad told around 600 officers that the operation could be the largest in the history of Norway’s police. Officers in uniform and plain clothes have been brought in from across the country to protect the royal family, heads of state, guests and hundreds of thousands of spectators.

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I feel very confident that this, perhaps the largest police operation of our time, and of those who came before us, perhaps ever, will proceed safely and with dignity.

“It will be discreet, even though it is massive,” Skulstad said. The operation includes securing the route from Oslo Airport to the city center, while officers receive further instructions on their specific assignments.

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It will be discreet, even though it is massive.

Oslo Police Chief Ida Melbo Øystese, who has overall responsibility for the operation, told officers that they were allowed to make mistakes, but that failing to act would be worse. The public, she said, should encounter police who are friendly and reassuring, while still prepared to use force if necessary.

Øystese also urged the officers to recognize the historic nature of the assignment. For most of them, she said, it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, one they might recall repeatedly in old age. She described the deployment as a major logistical operation involving people who do not normally work together, and encouraged them to enjoy the occasion while carrying out their duties.

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The nation should meet a police force that it experiences as friendly and safe, but that of course can also use force if necessary.