What does level 4 of the anti-terrorist alert maintained in Spain mean and what would level 5 mean?

• No, Spain has not raised the terrorist alert to level 5: the Police deny this hoax circulating on WhatsApp

Spain has maintained level 4 anti-terrorist alert activated since the attacks that occurred in France in 2015. The Minister of the Interior, who meets every week with law enforcement to discuss aspects of national security, is in charge of reviewing this measure following the Anti-Terrorism Prevention and Protection Plan.. To date, this level 4 terrorist alert, for which complementary measures have recently been implemented to reinforce, for example, security devices at certain “especially sensitive” points throughout Spain, has not been withdrawn in recent years..

The Anti-Terrorism Alert Level (NAA) scale consists of five levels, ranging from low risk to very high risk.. Level 4 of anti-terrorist alert corresponds to a high risk of threat, and this week the acting Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, has precisely chaired the Terrorist Threat Assessment Table to determine the need to apply complementary measures at the level. 4 in the face of the climate of bomb threats that has altered the usual routine of the citizens of France, the neighboring country. For now, the members of the Board do not believe it is necessary to raise the alert to level 5, which would correspond to a “very high risk”.

This anti-terrorist alert scale was implemented in 2005, after the terrorist attacks that occurred in Atocha, Madrid, in 2004.. At the beginning, the scale had three levels, but in 2015, after the attacks in France, the range was expanded to five levels, leaving Spain at level 4 to this day.. Thus, between 2005 and May 2015, the anti-terrorist alert levels in Spain have been between 1 and 3, with level 4 being activated on June 26 of that year after the attacks that occurred in France, Tunisia, Kuwait and Somalia, according to what can be consulted in a dossier on the NAA distributed by the Ministry of the Interior.

What the Anti-Terrorism Prevention, Protection and Response Plan entails

As the Ministry of the Interior website explains, the Anti-Terrorist Alert Level scale is based on four fundamental points: prevent, protect, pursue and prepare for the response.. With level 4 of anti-terrorist alert in Spain, the aim is to protect all those objectives susceptible to a terrorist attack, such as facilities, networks, systems and physical and information technology equipment.. Public or official centers and organizations, people, goods, services and the environment also fall within this protection.. Each level entails the immediate gradual implementation of a specific group of measures adapted to the nature of the threat..

Level 4 with complementary measures in Spain

After the violent attacks in France and Belgium, the Terrorist Threat Assessment Table, chaired by Fernando Grande-Marlaska and which meets weekly, decided to apply complementary measures for level 4 out of 5. Among these measures, the reinforcement of security devices at certain especially sensitive points stands out, such as synagogues, Jewish educational centers or the Israeli Embassy, among others..

1. It is important that we all know the location of the EMERGENCY EXITS and the evacuation routes of the places that we frequent with some regularity, such as work centers, sports stadiums, shopping centers or places of leisure.#WhatToDoInAnAtentado pic.twitter.com/ Cw3m7zESTE

— Ministry of the Interior (@interiorgob) December 18, 2017

The different people responsible for State security participate in these meetings, such as the Secretary of State for Security and the General Director of Coordination and Studies.. Representatives of the National Intelligence Center (CNI), the National Police, the Civil Guard, the Mossos d'Esquadra, the Ertzaintza, the Intelligence Center of the Armed Forces (CIFAS) and the Department of National Security also collaborate..

Although complementary measures have been activated for level 4 of anti-terrorist alert, the Minister of the Interior ruled out raising this alert to level 5. This level would be reserved for possible imminent attacks in national territory, deploying the Army in sensitive points and with large concentrations of citizens..