Queen of England braves threats to her life, attends Remembrance Day

LONDON, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Despite a number of terror threats aimed at the Queen of England and other U.K. politicians, ceremonies for Remembrance Sunday went ahead as planned at the Cenotaph in London.

After security forces thwarted an apparent assassination plot aimed at the Queen, the royal figurehead lead Sunday's services honoring British soldiers who have sacrificed their lives in the service of their country. This year's Remembrance Day marked the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the First World War. It was also the 70th anniversary of the D-Day.

The ceremonies began with a two-minute moment of silence, as the Queen and other members of the Royal Family gathered the "empty tomb" memorial in Whitehall.

Four young men, aged 19 to 27, were arrested this weekend for their alleged involvement in the terror plot; they remain in custody under the powers granted to authorities by the Terrorism Act. Security presence was increased in cities around Great Britain, as the nation's official terror threat was raised to "severe" -- meaning an act of terrorism was "highly likely."

Terrorism experts said the response by British officials was predictable.

"We are not seeing anything we wouldn't expect to see before any big occasion," Sally Leivesley, a former member of the Met's Counter Terrorism Advisory Panel, told the Daily Record. "What we are seeing has been a response by by counter-terrorist officers to intelligence of intended attacks."