Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Remembering the July 7th 2005 Islamist terrorist attack in London



7 July London bombings: Ceremonies in memory of victims


Prince William has attended a service in Hyde Park in memory of the 52 people who died in the London bombings of 7 July 2005.
A minute's silence was observed earlier as survivors of the attacks and relatives of the victims gathered at a ceremony at St Paul's Cathedral.
After the silence, petals fell from the dome and four candles were lit - one for each of the four blast sites. 
Some stations held silences at 08:50 BST - the time of the first explosions.
The Duke of Cambridge joined victims' families, survivors and ambulance and fire brigade employees who were working 10 years ago at the Hyde Park memorial to those who died, for a tribute of songs and personal readings.
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Emma Craig, who was 14 at the time of the bombings, survived the blast at Aldgate. 
"I can't stand up and say, as many have done before, that the London bombings have had an affect on me that changed my life positively, because it was and still is very much a part of my growing up, my childhood, my adolescence," she said.
"Quite often people say 'It didn't break us, terrorism won't break us'. The fact is, it may not have broken London, but it did break some of us."
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Giving the address at the anniversary service in St Paul's the Bishop of London, the Right Reverend Richard Chartres, said the attacks had affected people from all over the world.
"Soon after 7 July, the families and the friends of the victims compiled a book of tributes. It is a taste of the ocean of pain surrounding the loss of each one of the victims," he said.
Media captionKey moments from the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 London bombings
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The names of the 52 victims were read out during the national service of commemoration at St Paul's
"The tribute book is also very revealing about the character of the London which the bombers attacked. The majority of the victims were young - they came from all over the UK, all over the world.
"London is an astonishing world in a city. But beyond the diversity, the book also conveys a unifying, agonised outcry."
Earlier, David Cameron and London mayor Boris Johnson were among those who laid wreaths in Hyde Park.
In a note on his wreath Mr Johnson wrote: "Ten years may have passed, but London's memory is undimmed. We honour again today the victims of 7/7. You will live forever in the hearts of the people of this city."
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At St Paul's Cathedral

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By Emma Ailes, BBC News
Unity was the resounding message of the service.
"Beyond the numbing shock of what happened, there was solidarity. There was unity in our grieving," the Bishop of London, Richard Chartres, said in his address.
In confirmation of his statement, many of the relatives and survivors in the congregation - strangers until their lives were suddenly welded together by the blasts - have become firm friends, and a vital source of support for each other over the last decade.
Leaders of all faiths pledged to stand united in the face of terrorism.
A peal of bells marked the close of the service at midday.
It was fitting that this significant anniversary was marked in St Paul's, whose dome came to symbolise Londoners' ability to pull together and go on during the blitz. 
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Media captionPM David Cameron and London Mayor Boris Johnson were among those who laid wreaths in Hyde Park
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George Psaradakis (second left), driver of the Tavistock Square bus, was among those who laid flowers
The bombings of three Tube trains and a bus - carried out by four bombers linked to al-Qaeda and carrying rucksacks of explosives - was the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil. 
At just after 08:50 on 7 July 2005, three explosions took place on the Underground - 26 people died at Russell Square, six at Edgware Road and seven at Aldgate.
Almost an hour later, a fourth device was set off on a double-decker bus in Tavistock Square, killing 13 people.
More than 700 people were injured in the attacks.
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Read more

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Media captionDavid Cameron: We think of the grace and dignity of the victim's families
Silences were held across the London transport network and flowers were laid at the sites of the four explosions.
The prime minister said the day of the attacks was "one of those days where everybody remembers exactly where they were when they heard the news".
Carmen Macovei was among those caught in the blast at Tavistock Square.
She said: "I can still remember every moment of that day, except where I was sitting on the bus. I remember standing there after it happened thinking, 'What happened to my bus?' It still feels like yesterday.
"The next day the picture of me standing on the bus was on the front of every paper.
"The most amazing things was the way Londoners reacted after it happened - with tolerance and togetherness. It's an amazing city."
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Thirteen people were killed in the Tavistock Square bus blast

'Walk together'

Commuters were urged to "walk together" by finishing their morning bus or Underground commute one stop early and travelling the last few minutes by foot. 
Adrian Luscombe, one of those taking part, tweeted: "A commuter today as I was 10 years ago. It could have been me. As fresh in memory as if it was yesterday."
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A unique grief

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By Peter Hunt, BBC correspondent at Hyde Park
This was a simple, short almost stark ceremony. 
There were no readings, no music. 
In silence, wreaths - more than a dozen of them - were placed on the memorial stone at the time when, 10 years ago, three of the four homemade rucksack bombs exploded underground with such devastating consequences. 
The 7 July Memorial, which consists of 52 stainless steel pillars, was designed to symbolise the random nature of the loss of life. 
Tessa Jowell, a minister at the time of the attacks, has spoken of how each column represents a unique person, a unique grief.
The memorial events are very much about that grief; about the enduring sense of loss suffered by the bereaved; and about the unfulfilled futures of the 52 who were murdered.
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The bombers began their journey to London from Luton
The bombings were carried out by Mohammad Sidique Khan, 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, Hasib Hussain, 18, and Germaine Lindsay, 19. The group had links to al-Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
The UK's most senior counter-terrorism officer, Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, said the rise of Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq meant the UK was now facing a "very different" threat. 
"We've seen another step change in terrorism in the way it works and connects across the world in the last couple of years," he said.
The UK's terror threat level was raised from "substantial" to "severe" in August 2014 in response to conflicts in Iraq and Syria.
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The victims

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A total of 52 people lost their lives when four suicide bombers attacked central London 10 years ago. Here are their stories.
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