The
British government has put extra soldiers on standby to provide
security for the London Olympics following concerns the private
contractor G4S would not train enough guards. (Reuters)
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, LONDON
More used to patrolling the
battlefields of Afghanistan than checking Olympic accreditations,
smiling British troops fanned out across London’s Olympic Park on
Tuesday to fill the void left by a private contractor’s failure to
provide enough guards.
Unarmed but in combat uniforms,
soldiers with suntans acquired in exotic locations far from cloudy
London were getting accustomed to their temporary theater of action,
the 2.5 square kilometers of former industrial wasteland transformed
into Olympic venues and accommodation.
With “London 2012” badges
starting to join regimental insignia on uniforms, soldiers swapped
machine guns for barcode zappers as they manned airport-style
checkpoints to the park. Several said they had recently served a tour
of duty in Afghanistan.
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