Police tighten security for Celebrate Israel Parade in Manhattan
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The New York City Police Department took no chances Sunday with the Celebrate Israel Parade in light of tensions overseas.
Police say there were no specific threats against the parade with thousands of marchers that started at 57th Street and proceeded up Fifth Avenue.
But security was tight, including more than 1,000 officers, bomb-sniffing dogs, sharpshooters on rooftops and radiation detection devices. Sanitation trucks filled with sand blocked streets to prevent vehicle attacks.
NYPD Chief of Patrol Rodney Harrison says the precautions are in response to threats of terrorism in Israel, the Middle East and around the world. Police also were bracing for anti-Israel demonstrations, taking into account the heightened tensions since the US moved its embassy to Jerusalem.
The parade marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of Israel.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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