LONDON, January 25, 2012 (AFP) - Almost 100 "organised criminals" have been arrested ahead of the London Olympics and protest camps will be banned from the Games, Britain's interior minister said Wednesday.
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| UNITED KINGDOM, London : Handout picture released by organisers of the Olympic Games London 2012 official logo. |
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With six months to go until the opening ceremony, Theresa May said the Games faced a "real and enduring threat" from terrorism but said she was confident the security approach would be "robust but seamless" without being intrusive.
In a speech to a defence think tank in London, the home secretary said she was confident police were taking a "robust attitude" to organised crime.
"The operation has already made nearly 100 arrests of organised criminals attempting to target the Games," she said.
A total of 97 arrests have been made, including of alleged ticket touts, people setting up bogus websites, and those accused of selling bogus hotel rooms.
"Police are sending a very clear message that we're not going to tolerate intrusions by organised criminals into the Olympic Games," she said.
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UNITED KINGDOM, London : A Royal Navy Lynx helicopter hovers over the Thames near Woolwich during a safety and security planning exercise for the London 2012 Olympic Games in London on January 19, 2012. The Royal Marines joined 44 police officers in a police-led safety and security exercise in preparation for the Games in London. AFP PHOTO / BEN STANSALL |
May said all security planning for the July 27-August 12 Games was based on the assumption that they were a potential target for attacks.
"We know we face a real and enduring threat from terrorism and we know that the Games -- as an iconic event -- will represent a target for terrorist groups," she said.
"Our Olympic security plans have been developed against an assumption that the terrorist threat level at the time of the Games will be severe."
The minister said in light of the anti-capitalism protest camp now into its fourth month outside London landmark St Paul's Cathedral, Olympics organisers would not tolerate encampments at the Games.
"We are also helping the police and (organisers) LOCOG to deal with the other emerging threats that have faced the Home Office in recent months, such as encampment protests," she told an audience of defence analysts.
Security and screening measures will stop any tents being taken into venues and organisers and police will respond rapidly to any incidents, she said.
"What I think is right is that we make plans for all eventualities. I can assure you the Metropolitan Police do have a robust attitude."
Around 25,000 troops and police, working alongside 23,700 security personnel from private companies, will be deployed to guard the Olympic Games.
The £553-million ($860-million, 665-million-euro) security operation will also involve warplanes, two navy ships and surface-to-air missile systems.
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