There will be approximately 200 thousand people and 170 official delegations who will reach Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis, scheduled for April 26 at 10:00am. Another 250 thousand people will then arrive in the Capital at a later time on the occasion of the election of the new pontiff. This was stated by Fabio Ciciliano, head of the Italian Civil Defence Department. The Council of Ministers has entrusted Ciciliano with the task of coordinating activities relating to mobility, reception, the health plan and assistance to the population. Today, April 23, the head of the Department has convened the Operations Committee to take stock, with particular attention to strategic railway hubs, such as the Termini and Rome-San Pietro stations, as well as the capital's ports and airports.

The security machine has been set in motion to manage days that are expected to be complicated due to the accumulation of multiple events. The Italian Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi spoke about it during the double summit at the Prefecture that took place yesterday - the National Committee for Order and Security chaired by him and the Provincial Committee led by Prefect Lamberto Giannini-: "We have started this great commitment for public safety aspects, a very demanding event because it sees the concomitance of the Pope's funeral, the celebrations of April 25 and the Jubilee events already scheduled". For the Jubilee of Adolescents, in fact, 120 thousand young people are expected to arrive in Rome from Friday to Sunday, despite the canonization of the young Carlo Acutis, who died of leukemia in 2006 and to whom miracles are attributed, having been suspended.

To deal with the situation, significant support is being provided by over 2,000 civil defence volunteers who are reaching Rome from all regions. The contingent of the Italian Fire Brigade and Law Enforcement Forces has been strengthened, which will guarantee security, traffic and body guard services for official delegations. Furthermore, the entire area of the Vatican and Rome is covered by a no-fly zone: no type of aircraft will be able to cross it. Surveillance is also guaranteed in the area thanks to helicopters, radar and Eurofighter Typhoon military fighter planes ready to take off if necessary. The area of St. Peter's Square will then be super-armoured on Saturday, also with preventive clean-ups in the subsoil, and snipers, bomb disposal experts, canine units of the Law Enforcement Forces, River Police and NBCR units (a specialised group of Fire Brigades present in case of danger due to nuclear, biological, chemical or radiological substances) will be deployed. The access points to the square will be guarded by metal detectors and the armed forces will have anti-drone devices.

In addition to the Vatican, the airports, stations and neighborhoods of Rome that will host the authorities will be under special surveillance by the police, especially Parioli since President Trump will be staying at Villa Taverna. As for the Capital, Mayor Roberto Gualtieri stated that "it will be an important and demanding challenge" and that "we cannot expect normal circulation for the funeral, it will be a unique moment". A security area has already been established and is delimited by: Largo del Colonnato, Via dei Corridori, Borgo Sant'Angelo, Via della Traspontina, Via Pio X, Borgo Santo Spirito, Largo degli Alicorni, Via Paolo VI and Piazza Sant'Uffizio. The area has a system of "wide-ranging" controls that become more intense as you get closer to the Vatican and can count on the availability of hundreds of law enforcement officers from every branch, along with doctors, nurses, and 118 emergency responders who will be inside ambulances and tents used as emergency rooms (in the Vatican, medical assistance will be guaranteed by the Order of Malta). Since April 21, the area of St. Peter's Square has been cordoned off and only those with a reservation can access it. The closures will then intensify from midnight between April 25 and 26. There will also be restrictions on pedestrian traffic through barriers that will prevent access to St. Peter's Square. On Saturday, to reach it, you can use the Metro A and get off at the Ottaviano and Cipro stops and then continue on foot, or the regional trains of the FL3 and FL5 lines, getting off at the San Pietro station. Ferrovie dello Stato has announced that it will increase its services until April 27 and will set up extraordinary checkpoints at Rome-Termini, Tiburtina, Ostiense, San Pietro, Valle Aurelia, Fiumicino and Civitavecchia.

Below, the video with the statements of Italian Minister Piantedosi and the one with the indications provided by Roma Mobilità: