Extra armed police will be visible on the streets of London from today to protect the capital from terrorist attacks, Metropolitan Police chief Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe and London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced.
"The first of 600 armed officers are due to be stationed at visible locations across London today, in order to help deter terrorists," the London Evening Standard says.
The Metropolitan Police announced in January that Operation Hercules would boost the number of armed officers to a total of 2,800. The extra 600 firearms officers are now fully trained and operationally ready.
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Today's announcement comes less than a month after 84 people were killed in terrorist attack in Nice, after a lorry ploughed into a crowd watching a fireworks display.
"We have seen attacks in Germany, in Belgium, in France and we would be foolish to ignore that," Hogan-Howe said.
Khan added that every London ward would have a dedicated police constable as part of his strategy to boost neighbourhood policing and build trust in communities.
It was announced in April that police forces in England and Wales are to train an extra 1,500 firearms officers.
However, the main police union has warned it will take time before they are operational, with chairman Steve White saying the "best-case scenario" would be 24 months to get the additional marksmen in place, LBC reports.
