South Korea has conducted a series of security drills to prepare for a multitude of potential terror attacks ahead of hosting the Winter Olympics in the shadow of its hermit nation neighbour.
The dramatic dress rehearsals ranged from hostage situations to vehicle attacks on crowds and even stretched to bomb-dropping drones.
Police and firemen were among around 420 personnel participating in the exercise, held in front of the Olympic Stadium at Pyeongchang, just 80km (50miles) from the heavily fortified border with North Korea.
The drills come after US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley raised doubts last week over whether the US Winter Olympics team will compete in the games due to safety concerns.
A South Korean sniper sits on top of a vehicle outside the Olympic Stadium in Pyeongchang
Two huge explosions fire out of two cars as part of the anti-terror drills in Pyeongchang
Police, firefighters and organization committee members take park in the drill simulating possible terror attacks during the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Games
A terrorist drone is attacked by member of South Korean Special Weapons Attack Team (SWAT) in an anti-terrorism exercise
A soldier leaps from a police vehicle onto a coach which was being used to simulate a bus carrying athletes
During the simulated drills, members of a SWAT team shot down a drone with a fake bomb attached to it as it flew towards a bus carrying athletes.
In another part of the mock exercise a terrorist took athletes hostage on a bus and tried to ram the vehicle into the stadium before being gunned down by police.
Officers in gas masks also removed a chemical bomb.
Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the UN, said America’s attendance at the 2018 Winter Olympics is still an ‘open question’ that is being discussed
Haley said American participation in the games was still an ‘open question’ being discussed by the Trump administration.
Quizzed on what would stop athletes from attending, she said questions have been raised over ‘how we protect the US citizens in the area’.
Speaking to Fox News she added: ‘I think those are conversations we are going to have to have, but what have we always said? We don’t fear anything, we live our lives.
‘And certainly [the games] is a perfect opportunity for all of [the athletes] to go and do something they have worked so hard for.’
Haley’s admission came after the Russian team was issued a blanket ban after being implicated in a state-sponsored doping scandal during the Sochi Olympics in 2014.
Individual athletes will still be allowed to compete if they can prove they are clean, but will not be allowed to fly the Russian flag or have their anthem played.
Cars explode during a anti-terror drill at the Olympic Stadium in Pyeongchang, South Korea
South Korean firefighters participate in an anti-terror drill at the Olympic Staduim, venue of the Opening and Closing ceremony, on December 12, 2017 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea
An armed police officer points his gun towards potential targets as part of a huge anti-terror drill
Emergency services personnel wearing protective hazmat clothing participate in an anti-terror drill at the Olympic Stadium
Anxiety on the Korean Peninsula has been rising in recent months due to a series of missile tests by North Korea as it continues its pursuit of nuclear weapons in defiance of UN sanctions and warnings from the United States.
South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said: ‘Please keep in mind that accidents always happen where no one has expected.
‘Please check until the last minute whether there are any security loopholes.’
Lee did not mention North Korea, but South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Friday flagged risks that North Korea could resort to terrorist or cyber attacks to spoil international events.
Some 5,000 armed forces personnel will be deployed at the Winter Games, according to South Korean government officials and documents.
Police and firemen were among around 420 personnel participating in the exercise, held in front of the Olympic Stadium at Pyeongchang, just 80km (50miles) from the heavily fortified border with North Korea
A member of the emergency services in a gas mask holds up a cordon in front of two police vehicles
South Korean rescue members wearing chemical protective suits take part in an anti-terror drill
Anxiety on the Korean Peninsula has been rising in recent months due to a series of missile tests by North Korea as it continues its pursuit of nuclear weapons in defiance of UN sanctions and warnings from the United States
Some 5,000 armed forces personnel will be deployed at the Winter Games, according to South Korean government officials and documents
Pyeongchang´s organizing committee for the 2018 Games (POCOG) has also hired a private cyber security company to guard against a hacking attack from the North, tender documents show.
To minimize the risk of provoking an aggressive North Korean reaction during the games, South Korea has asked Washington to delay regular joint military exercises until after the Olympics, the Financial Times reported.
A spokesman for South Korea’s defense ministry said on Tuesday that nothing has been decided.