Militants claiming loyalty to the Islamic State (ISIS) have declared that they intend to conquer Rome.
The warning came in a video apparently showing the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians next to the Mediterranean Sea in Libya.
In the video, an English-speaking militant said they are sending a message “from the south of Rome”.
At the end of the footage, the same English-speaking fighter raises his knife to the water and says ISIS would “conquer Rome, with Allah’s permission”.
Also on the video, an Islamist says in English: “All crusaders: safety for you will be only wishes, especially if you are fighting us all together.
“Therefore we will fight you all together . . . The sea you have hidden Sheikh Usama Bin Laden’s body in, we swear to Allah, we will mix it with your blood.”
Italy’s interior minister Angelino Alfano said security precautions around the Vatican have been “very high”.
After Mr Alfano met Vatican officials this week, Vatican secretary of state Cardinal Pietro Parolin said the minister reported there are no specific threats against the Vatican.
Cardinal Parolin said that while there is “a media war on the part of ISIS”, and jihadists frequently pledge to conquer Rome, there have been no concrete threats.
The cardinal concluded that Vatican officials should be “careful, vigilant, without falling into alarmism”.
The head of the Swiss Guards said his forces are ready to protect Pope Francis if ISIS attempts a strike.
Colonel Christoph Graf said: “Following the terrorists’ threats, we’re asking the guards to be more attentive and observe peoples’ movements closely.
“If something happens we’re ready, as are the men of the Gendarmerie.”
Last month, the Vatican played down media reports that it had been named as a probable next target for an Islamist attack.
According to the reports, Vatican authorities had received specific warnings from both Israel’s Mossad and the US’s CIA agencies regarding Pope Francis’s safety.
But a Vatican spokesman responded at that time that the Holy See had received nothing “concrete and specific” about any attack plans.
Sources