ATHENS, May 15 AFP - Greek police said today they hadarrested three British journalists inside the mainOlympic stadium in Athens, just days after two otherjournalists were detained in the stadium in a bid totest security.
The three, a BBC producer as well as a journalist andphotographer from Zoo Weekly magazine, entered thecomplex without permission with the goal of wanting tocheck security measures'', police said. They were arrested a few minutes later and releasedafter their identities were checked, they said. On Thursday a pair of journalists from Britain's Timesnewspaper were arrested at the Olympic stadium. Times reporter Laura Peek and photographer Paul Rogerswere able to wander unnoticed and unchallenged’’ rightinto the centre of the main arena before being detected,the British newspaper said in its Friday edition.
The Times has run a series of articles questioningsecurity at the upcoming Olympics, and faced criticismon Thursday from Greek Public Order Minister YiorgosVoulgarakis.
A Greek extremist group said on Thursday it wasresponsible for several small bomb attacks outside thecapital, and implicitly warned visitors to the Olympicsthey could be targeted during the games.
AFP
:o LONDON, May 13 AFP - A pair of British journalistsarrested at the Olympic Stadium in Athens had managed tospend two and a half hours inside the complex beforebeing detected, their newspaper said late today.
Times reporter Laura Peek and photographer Paul Rogerswere able to wander unnoticed and unchallenged'' rightinto the centre of the main arena, the British newspapersaid in its Friday edition. The front-page article was accompanied by a photographshowing Peek standing in the middle of the stadium,illuminated by floodlights but without anyone elsearound. Peek's account in the newspaper appeared to contradictthe version of Olympics organisers ATHOC who said thepair had been detained as they attempted to get into thecomplex. According to the Times reporter, after arriving at thestadium late yesterday by taxi she asked a securityguard if she could look around’’.
Instead of ordering me to leave, the guard handed mea beer and showed me around the swimming pool, cyclingvelodrome and agora,'' Peek wrote, adding that the manhad warned her to watch out for police officerspatrolling at 25-minute intervals. After wandering around some more -- during whichRogers took more than 90 photographs of what is meant tobe a secure area -- Peek said she walked into the middleof the arena, where a policeman spotted the pair andthey were escorted out. The Times has run a series of articles questioningsecurity at the upcoming Olympics, and faced criticismtoday from Greek Public Order Minister YiorgosVoulgarakis. However, the newspaper has vowed to keepinvestigating. The Times has the greatest respect for the Greekpeople and is fully aware of the significantorganisational achievements that have been made inAthens for the Olympics,’’ Robert Thomson, the editor ofthe paper said in a statement to AFP.
``However, the security of the games is ofinternational importance and we will continue toinvestigate the story with journalistic rigour andreport to our readers around the world the facts as wefind them,’’ he said.
Meanwhile in Athens, a Greek extremist group saidtoday it was responsible for several small bomb attacksoutside the capital, and implicitly warned visitors tothe Olympics they could be targeted during the games.
AFP/