Operation Sassoon

Operation Sassoon provides a basic generic framework for an emergency evacuation plan of any part of London, or Heathrow, in the case of a major terrorist attack in the British capital. It is part of an extensive anti-terror plan installed by the British Government in response to the rising threat of terrorist attacks in the United Kingdom. The plan, first drawn up in 2003, oversees the partial or complete evacuation of the inner parts of London after either a large-scale assault affecting a larger area of the city or an event having a lasting effect over a longer period of time, such as a biological, chemical or nuclear attack. Besides the actual evacuation process, Operation Sassoon covers the principles of largescale evacuation, the installation of temporary shelters for evacuees in assigned areas outside the city, activation of the plan and the roles and responsibilities of agencies under the plan, as well as the deployment of police and military forces for maintaining civil order after a major attack has occurred.