Major army exercise

Don’t be alarmed if you see soldiers on the streets – or missile units on hill tops – this weekend.

The army is currently taking part in a large-scale exercise with 4,000 troops – and the main area is western Switzerland, especially Geneva. 

There will be a focus around the airport and the refinery in Cressier in canton Neuchatel. 

The scenario is based on an invasion of armed militias from a fictional area of Europe and has been planned for many years – but has been adjusted to take into account events in Ukraine and Sudan, says General Mathias Tüscher.

The exercise will last until Tuesday. 

More from Bitesize News

  • Bank details compromised

    British digital bank Revolut has admitted handing customer information to fraudsters who impersonated a European government agency

  • Watch theft victim speaks out

    A luxury watch dealer just across the French border from Geneva has broken his silence about a violent robbery earlier this month

  • Crans Montana hearings due before end of year

    Jessica Moretti, who ran the Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, is now living in near-isolation in the Valais village of Lens more than eight months after the deadly New Year's Eve fire

  • Better news for economy

    Switzerland's economy will grow 1.7% this year — nearly double the 0.9% expansion forecast in June, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs said yesterday

  • Geneva budget plan unveiled

    Geneva has now put figures to its austerity plan — a CHF 546 million deficit for 2027, even after CHF 247 million in cuts

  • Summer fires increase

    Firefighters across French-speaking Switzerland tackled far more vegetation fires this summer than in any of the past five years

Download our app

  • Available on the App Store
  • Available on Google Play