The Interior Ministry announced a series of measures for safe New Year's festivities on Thursday as millions prepare to celebrate the beginning of 2023 with street parties and in popular venues.
Starting Friday, security forces will implement nationwide security measures for three days. Some 490,000 personnel of the ministry, including police and gendarmerie teams, will work around the clock for three days.
The ministry instructed governorates of 81 provinces to step up inspections of busy areas, from tourist destinations to shopping centers and marketplaces, airports, ports and mass transportation hubs. Traffic police will be ready for extra measures in places drawing heavy traffic, particularly locations popular among tourists, including ski resorts. The Interior Ministry also set up a center to coordinate inspections and additional measures for New Year’s Eve.
The presence of security personnel will be higher in busy locations as well while security forces will increase inspections to crack down on illegal activities, particularly gambling, which escalates during New Year's celebrations.
Authorities will also step up efforts against the sale of bootleg liquor, something that poisons a large number of people before and during celebrations. In the past week, nationwide operations led to the seizure of large hauls of bootleg liquor, which claimed dozens of lives this year.
New Year's Eve is usually a spectacular occasion marked on town squares across the country and cases of violence or riots are rare. Last year, the country celebrated New Year's Eve without restrictions, after a four-day curfew due to the coronavirus pandemic overshadowed celebrations for the arrival of 2021.
