In a statement sent to Lusa, the PSP indicated that the incident involved passengers arriving in Portugal from Salvador, Brazil, who were directed to a departure gate. This caused “a mixing of passengers arriving from a third country, who had not undergone screening in accordance with applicable European Union requirements, with passengers who had already been screened and were located within the critical area of the restricted security zone.”

As the area in Terminal 1 had been compromised, an evacuation was ordered, and all passengers had to undergo screening again, including those already on board aircraft who had passed through the boarding bridges connected to the affected area.

“The border area remained temporarily closed until the evacuation, security check, and cleaning of the compromised area were completed; operations resumed once security conditions were fully restored,” the PSP added.