Military will join London Olympics security

The organizers of the London Olympics have called in the military to help cover a shortfall in security for next summer's Games and Paralympics.

Up to 6,000 troops could be brought in to help police the events, with UK government sources still to determine exactly how many troops were needed, Sky News reported Friday.

The shortfall came to light earlier this year when it emerged that manpower of up to 20,000 would be needed to protect the Olympic venues.

Previously, the London Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) had contracted security firm G4S to provide just 10,000 security staff, leaving organizers well short of the numbers necessary.

The hiring of the military deepened concerns about the final security cost for the Games.

It is understood that financing for troop assistance will come from the overall £9.3 billion ($14.8 billion) Olympic budget, rather than the overstretched resources of the government's defense department.

It comes just days after London's police chief in charge of Olympic security, Chris Allison, admitted it was impossible to predict how much security for the Games will cost.

While the government hopes the security budget can eventually be brought down to £450 million, some estimates believe the overall total will top £1.1 billion.