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London Terrorist Attacks July 2005

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14:29 / 21.07.05

Tony Blair says "these incidents are designed to frighten people"...

werenotafraid.com gets another surge...

14:33 / 21.07.05

I'm unusually hungry, but I don't think that's related to the Warren Street incident.

14:34 / 21.07.05

Just wait till you discover that only HUMAN FLESH can satisfy the craving!

14:36 / 21.07.05

iTunes is still helping me breathe more easily.

Hyde Park was an oasis of normality - yes towards the edges you could hear the wailing of police sirens, but that seems normal these days. - Grey now seems to be the colour of choice for undercover police cars...

Our Lady Has Left the Building

14:45 / 21.07.05

There will be a Met police press conference at 1730, hopefully it'll be that nice PC Paddick again...

14:46 / 21.07.05

A grey undercover car (Mercedes, no less) was made way for by my good self on Gipsy Road this very morn.

[Barbelith would verily starve without my nuggets of invaluable information.

"What did we all do for news before the Era of Safeling?" the seasoned Lithers wonder appreciatively.]

14:46 / 21.07.05

Flowers, have you got a felt hat on and are you drinking tea out of a china cup as you say that?

14:48 / 21.07.05

I've got to say, all these incidents do provide a diverting alternative to doing any work. And of course, we all have to leave work early *just in case*. In case of what? In case delays on the tube cause us to miss the beginning of the Simpsons?

Not that I'm complaining.

14:49 / 21.07.05

Richard Whatsit from the Guardian said “Members of the public reported problems on the tube lines hours before the attacks. Was there prior intelligence of possible attacks?”

To which I say no, that’s the London Underground. There’s clearly things ya cain’t get from newspaper-learnin.

Our Lady Has Left the Building

14:49 / 21.07.05

Why hasn't that nice young PC Paddick got a girlfriend then? Young man...

Our Lady Has Left the Building

14:58 / 21.07.05

From what DaveBCooper said about the tube, there was a fair amount of disruption yesterday on the tube, the Northern Line was slowish from Tottenham Court Road to Camden, then we were stopped in the tunnel for about five minutes between Belsize Park and Hampstead, so it could be usual summer-related tube-problems before the terrorist attack.

Sky are saying that some stupid sod caused a panic by trying to steal someone's bag in the vicinity of UCL and then running to Euston Square. Unsurprisingly he didn't get very far, but the situation in UCL is ongoing.

Our Lady Has Left the Building

15:04 / 21.07.05

Fox News:
Male Anchor: "Our sister station Sky News has been all over the situation and we're going to keep breaking into their coverage as events continue."
Female Anchor: "Yes, I have to say Sky's coverage has been very extensive and very 'spot on' as they say here in the UK..."

Grrr!

15:24 / 21.07.05

Cor a big kerfuffle outside my office (Dean street in soho) police men jumping from a car to wrestle a man to the ground- guns pulled... just like an episode of the profesionals...

Turns out he'd nicked a mobile phone... gah!

Was cool to watch though....

15:51 / 21.07.05

glad to see the barb spirit remains, it's how they made it through the blitz you know, making off colour jokes about the level of training in the Luftwaffa (sic).

Saw the bit on the BBC web where they issued the "wires out of jacket" description and my only thought was god help those tall blokes with walkmans on. Or for that matter iPods.

Sleaze you be nice to any gun totting police that stop you in the street mate...

Our Lady Has Left the Building

16:03 / 21.07.05

Police & Mayor News Briefing.

Commissioner Blair: "London has gone past this point again and is back to business."
"There may be a breakthrough as there is forensic material at these sites."
Police appealing for pics to be sent to them again (www.police.uk)

Ken: Thanks the emergency services and Underground staff for their "determination not to have our life disrupted any more than necessary".
"Not surprising to have an attack so soon after the first"
Repeats appeals for help.

Questions: Blair confirms some of the bombs didn't explode.
Not confirming or denying whether any of the bombs are nailbombs.
Says the guy arrested at Downing Street was completely unconnected.
Mayor says trying to increase security at tube stations would be hopeless, as it would have to be like at airports with people being scanned, their bags checked, most stations not physically big enough to contain such equipment.
Blair says that there are obvious simularities with the previous attack but not confirming it's Al Qaeda yet.
Ken says to check the TfL website for Tube disruption tonight, but bus service is running at full capacity except for where roads are still closed.
Blair not confirming or denying the exploding backpack on someone's back story.

Our Lady Has Left the Building

16:05 / 21.07.05

Wikipedia on today.

STOATIE LIEKS CHOCOLATE MILK

16:33 / 21.07.05

That was all a bit weird. Coming home on the 243 from Waterloo, and they start taping off the road round Old Street way. "Bugger", says I, "I'm busting for a piss".

Then, as so often happens, a big fat guy with a very loud voice starts talking into his phone "they've confirmend bombs at Warren Street and Oval, and one on a bus in Hackney". "Shut up", thinks I, "I'm reading. Quit panicking over nothing".

Then the bus stops, and we get told by the driver to check for unattended luggage. (Surely that's not the passengers' job... is it?) Then a guy gets on, asks everyone if their bags are actually theirs. Then the driver again: "not wishing to alarm anyone, but there have been some bombs. And one was on a bus." Then the bus moves off, round a diversion.

At this point (does this go in "inappropriate responses" or here? not sure, really) I'm thinking "well, the traditional response is to go to the pub. But I'm in the middle of fucking Shoreditch, and I'm buggered if I'm going drinking there. If I have to start drinking in the Cantaloupe then the terrorists have DEFINITELY won".

Then I got home, turned on the telly. Everyone's all mental about it. So I went to the pub. The pub in fucking Stokey. Hear that, terrorists? The pub in fucking Stokey.

All seems a bit weird, really... why let off a bunch of detonators? Or what are the chances of a bunch of guys all fucking up? Copycat kids, maybe?

Or are we facing a terrorist threat as inept as that levelled at us by the fucking Shoebomber?
Should we feel scared, or vaguely insulted?

18:24 / 21.07.05

well, it certainly put NY on alert:

I can't believe this --- of course, I don't mind them searching my bags but this will put the kibosh on those running through the turnstile with incredible speed entrances into the NYC subway system...

------------------------------

Police to Check Bags on NYC Subways

By SARA KUGLER, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 26 minutes ago

Yahoo News

NEW YORK - Police will begin conducting random searches of packages and backpacks carried by people entering city subways, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Thursday after a new series of bomb attacks in London.

Authorities said the system is still being developed, but the plan is for passengers carrying bags to be selected at random before they have passed through turnstiles.

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly promised that officers would not engage in racial profiling, and that passengers will be free to "turn around and leave" rather than consent to a search.

Officials would not immediately say how frequently the checks would occur. The checks are scheduled to begin at some stations by Thursday evening and will be occurring throughout the system by rush hour on Friday.

"We just live in a world where, sadly, these kinds of security measures are necessary," Bloomberg said. "Are they intrusive? Yes, a little bit. But we are trying to find that right balance."

Searching the bags of more than a token number of straphangers may be impossible.

----------------------------

19:54 / 21.07.05

It's all a bit shit eh...

Anyone hear about a guy who was robbing a little shop next to the hospital who got a little freaked when he left the shop and was surrouned by armed police. Or was that just one of those urban myths that spring up to make people feel a little better.

Weird seeing Oval on the TV after living there for so long.

Our Lady Has Left the Building

06:02 / 22.07.05

I don't think it was an urban myth, was watching News 24 when it happened, they didn't catch any of it on video but something was going on.

07:11 / 22.07.05

The tube driver on my train this morning welcomed everbody aboard "the up yours Al Qaeda express" which raised a chuckle from everyone in the carriage.

09:00 / 22.07.05

**Breaking story**

From Sky Website

SUICIDE BOMBER SHOT

Police have shot a suspected suicide bomber near a tube station in south London.

Marksmen opened fire near Stockwell Tube station as passengers were evacuated. It is thought the man was killed.

Passenger Briony Coetsee said: "We were on the Tube and then we suddenly heard someone say `get out, get out' and then we heard gunshots."

Sky News Crime Correspondent Martin Brunt said: "There is no word on whether he has been killed or simply injured."

If the suspect is confirmed to be a suicide bomber, it would mark the fifth attempted terrorist attack on London in less than a day.

The is thought to have been either stepping on to the train or was on the platform.

Brunt said: "He was probably shot in the head. There is no confirmation of that."

Police have been given orders to shoot to kill if they believe someone is about to detonate a bomb.

Two underground lines are understood to have been closed following the incident.

Farkin 'ell its fun here in London, just heard the mandatory helicopter sweep over soho...

Our Lady Has Left the Building

09:16 / 22.07.05

There's a parallel thread because of the shootings here.

Breaking News on the Beeb: Armed police surrounding 'a mosque in East London'. Fuuuuuuuck...

Our Lady Has Left the Building

09:32 / 22.07.05

Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades claims responsibility for yesterday's attack. Less an attack, more a total cock-up. Where's the report saying "An Al Qaeda group claimed responsibility and apologised for not managing to kill anyone, shrugging and saying 'I don't know, you just can't get the martyrs today can you?'"

Our Lady Has Left the Building

09:49 / 22.07.05

Sky are citing a 'security source' that the man shot at Stockwell was one of those involved in the attack attempts yesterday.

09:52 / 22.07.05

well duh. I mean it hardly takes a genius.

Those "dismayed" looking failed bombers are in a bit of a sticky situation. They know the police will track them down in time and so they have to unload their bombs / do as much damage as possible as quickly as possible.

My prediction: expect three more incidents like this over the next day or two.

09:53 / 22.07.05

The UCH situation just seems to have gone quiet. Anyone know what happened there? NHS rumour has it that one of the crap suicide bombers from yesterday legged it through the hospital, in and out before it could be cordoned off (and it was cordoned off quite quickly). If that's true, it suggests a knowledge of the hospital layout...

A beautiful tunnel of ghosts

10:07 / 22.07.05

Last night BBC News 24 reported at about 7 that, following the sweep of the hospital by armed police, a police jeep flanked by motorcycle outriders had sped away from the UCH, with speculation that an arrest had been made. I was told this morning that last night's Newsnight reported that a man arrested at UCH had been released, although I haven't found an online source for this information yet.

Psi-L is working in hell

10:10 / 22.07.05

Info about the police searching UCH is here

It appears that two people who were detained at gun point near the hospital were released, but the police were still searching the hospital.

The resistable rise of Reidcourchie

10:12 / 22.07.05

Does anyone know what happened in Whitehall yesterday? When I last looked at the TV it was being evacuated, was that a flase alarm?

14:10 / 22.07.05

And here's the suspects....

not the best pics in the world- but surely someone will recognise them?

Our Lady Has Left the Building

14:11 / 22.07.05

Police release bad quality CCTV pics of people they want to question about yesterday's attacks. Not sure which of them is the guy they shot today.

14:29 / 22.07.05

my money's on the guy in the white hat. didn't one report say he was a bit pudgy?

14:50 / 22.07.05

This May Help...

London Kicks Arse!

15:07 / 22.07.05

>> The tube driver on my train this morning welcomed everbody aboard "the up yours Al Qaeda express" which raised a chuckle from everyone in the carriage.

Fantastic.

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