Deaths, injuries in London blasts

Taylor

Taylor

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NOTE: This is a developing story and details will be added as they become available.

LONDON - Near simultaneous explosions rocked the London subway and tore open a double-decker bus during the morning rush hour Thursday, causing at least two deaths and 300 injuries in what Prime Minister Tony Blair said was a "barbaric" terrorist attack timed to disrupt the Group of Eight summit.

The explosions came a day after London was awarded the 2012 Olympics and as the G-8 summit was getting under way in Scotland.

"We are concerned that this is a coordinated attack. We are aware that one of the sites does contain indications of explosives," London police chief Sir Ian Blair said on Sky News.

He said authorities had not received any warning. "We have been at a very high state of alert. Of course if there had been any kind of specific warnings we would have dealt with it," he said.

Four explosions confirmed
Officials at hospitals surveyed by The Associated Press reported about 300 people treated for injuries following the explosions. A senior police official said about 150 people were seriously injured.

The hospitals confirmed one death, while police sources have said at least two people died.

British Home Secretary Charles Clarke said there were three explosions on the subway system and one on a bus. Earlier reports indicated six explosions.

“We do not know who or what organizations are responsible for these terrible criminal acts,” Clarke said.

Prime Minister Blair later left the G-8 summit for the day to return to London, while the other leaders continued the meeting.

"They will never succeed in destroying what we hold dear in this country and in other civilized nations throughout the world," Blair said before leaving and flanked by fellow G-8 leaders, including President Bush. "We shall prevail and they shall not."

Bush later warned Americans to be "extra vigilant" as they head to work.

Bus destroyed
One explosion destroyed a double-decker bus at Russell Square in central London, near the ritish Museum.

"I was on the bus in front and heard an incredible bang, I turned round and half the double decker bus was in the air," Belinda Seabrook told Press Association, the British news agency.

She said the bus was packed with people. "It was a massive explosion and there were papers and half a bus flying through the air," she said.

Jay Kumar said he ran out of his business when he heard a loud explosion. He said the top deck of the bus had collapsed, sending people tumbling to the floor.

Many appeared badly injured, and bloodied people ran from the scene. “People were running this way panicked," he said. "They knew it was a bomb. Debris flying all over, mostly glass.”

'Walking wounded'
Clarke said explosions also went off on subway trains at or near these stations: Edgware Road, Aldgate and King's Cross.

“It was chaos,” said Gary Lewis, who was evacuated from a subway train at King’s Cross station. “The one haunting image was someone whose face was totally black and pouring with blood.”

Police sealed off large areas around other underground and mainline rail stations. Firemen donned chemical protection suits before rushing into stations.

A doctor at Aldgate said at least 90 people were wounded at that location alone. At least two people were said to have been killed at that station.

"There are some walking wounded at Aldgate," said a spokesman for City of London police, speaking on condition of anonymity. "We are not sure of the scale of the incident. Reports are still coming in."

'Loads of people screaming'
Bradley Anderson, a subway passenger, told Sky News that "there was some kind of explosion" as his train reached the Edgware Road station in northeast London. "Everything went black and we collided into some kind of oncoming train," Anderson said.

Simon Corvett, who was on an eastbound train from Edgware Road station, said that "all of sudden there was this massive huge bang."

"It was absolutely deafening and all the windows shattered," he said. "There were just loads of people screaming and the carriages filled with smoke. You could see the carriage opposite was completely gutted. There were some people in real trouble."

A Web site posting said the blasts were the work of a group calling itself the "Secret Organization of al-Qaida in Europe."

No such group had previously been reported and the claim could not be verified. The claim did not appear on any of the Web sites normally used by al-Qaida.

Clarke said efforts would be made to resume underground and bus operations as soon as possible but gave no indication of when that might be.

“People are strongly advised not to travel into central London as the emergency services must be allowed to do their work in the most effective way they can,” he said.
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Islamic group claims London attack

Source

CAIRO, Egypt - A group calling itself “The Secret Organization of al-Qaida in Europe” posted a claim of responsibility for Thursday’s blasts in London, saying they were in retaliation for Britain’s involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The authenticity of the message could not be immediately confirmed.

The statement, which also threatened attacks in Italy and Denmark, was published on a Web site popular with Islamic militants, according to Elaph, a secular Arabic-language news Web site, and Der Spiegel magazine in Berlin, which published the text on their Web sites.

“Rejoice, Islamic nation. Rejoice, Arab world. The time has come for vengeance against the Zionist crusader government of Britain in response to the massacres Britain committed in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said the statement, translated by The Associated Press in Cairo. The AP was unable to access the Web site where it was posted, which was closed quickly after the reports.

The group al-Qaida in Europe claimed responsibility for the last major terror attack in Europe: a string of bombs that hit commuter trains in Madrid, Spain in March 2004, killing 191 people. Two days after that attack, a video was found in a trash can outside a Madrid mosque with a statement purported to be from the group’s spokesman, called by the nickname “Abu Dujan al Afghani.”

In the new statement, the group said “the heroic mujahedeen carried out a blessed attack in London, and now Britain is burning with fear and terror, from north to south, east to west.”

“We warned the British government and the British people repeatedly. We have carried out our promise and carried out a military attack in Britain after great efforts by the heroic mujahedeen over a long period to ensure its success.”

“We continue to warn the governments of Denmark and Italy and all crusader governments that they will receive the same punishment if they do not withdraw their troops from Iraq and Afghanistan,” the statement went on.

It was signed “The Secret Organization of al-Qaida in Europe.”

© 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Yes, I heard from my co-worker thru radio few hours ago. :(

My co-worker told me that nobody knows where the 6 bombs comes from. They suspect it's Muslim but they are still find out.

2 dead
90 injuries

Yes, I saw on TV yesterday how happy British are over Olympic Games 2012 and now? :(

I just told my co-worker right way after read your post that there're over 300 people injuries and 150 serious injuries. :(

They are my prayer and thought. :(

I will check with my British brother via email tonight. That nearby area where my family lives.
 
Sad day for England

I was stationed in London when I was in the Navy years ago. I used the tube and bus to go EVERYWHERE. I can believe the figures that 9 million people were affected when the bus and underground (subway) shut down. Most Brits don't have cars. It's awful to hear this.
 
I remember when I was in London, IRA bomb scares was a common occurence. They would close streets off and force cars and buses to take diversions.

It's really sad about the bombs in London Underground.
 
I haven't heard a peep out of all the anti-bush people who say terrorism is not a threat. This could have easily been here in the US as it was in London or what happened in Spain. Its a worldwide problem that needs to be taken care of. Bush and Blair may have gotten the bees stirred up, but they didn't invent these terrorist organizations that have been festering like a cancer for decades. Many people act like if you turn your back and don't look, then the problem isn't there. It would be nice to think that things worked that way, but they don't.
 
I'm not saying terrorists are not a problem, I AM going to say that the U.S. continues to perpetuate the problem and incite those terrorists to HIT ANYTHING they think will help their cause. It's not distinctly a President Bush issue, it's an ENTIRE U.S. issue.

In any case, my heart goes out to those affected in London and the nation of Great Britain, this is a terrible thing and shouldn't have happened. I wish those bombers were caught red-handed and published to the world, that would have been extra-sweet because there have been so many terrorist incidents that we either don't know about because the government hushed them up after catching them or we weren't able to prevent them.
 
I remember, I saw somewhere media that Pres Bush was ahead to Europe. It could be connect to the terrorist.

OR French people are angry with Bristish for won the bid about the Olympic 2012 ??

Do not you think if Parian people revenuge on London people?
 
Sabrina said:
I remember, I saw somewhere media that Pres Bush was ahead to Europe. It could be connect to the terrorist.

OR French people are angry with Bristish for won the bid about the Olympic 2012 ??

Do not you think if Parian people revenuge on London people?
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Yes, I am agree that it look strange but it´s not. It´s terrorist, they just found out.
 
I am waiting to get the reply from my brother and family via email...

I watched on TV at hour ago saying that 40 dead, 300 injuries and 48 serious injuries. It is still searching....

The TV news will be back again within 1 hour later.
 
Dennis said:
I'm not saying terrorists are not a problem, I AM going to say that the U.S. continues to perpetuate the problem and incite those terrorists to HIT ANYTHING they think will help their cause. It's not distinctly a President Bush issue, it's an ENTIRE U.S. issue.

In any case, my heart goes out to those affected in London and the nation of Great Britain, this is a terrible thing and shouldn't have happened. I wish those bombers were caught red-handed and published to the world, that would have been extra-sweet because there have been so many terrorist incidents that we either don't know about because the government hushed them up after catching them or we weren't able to prevent them.
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How would you know for sure if its from U.S. issues? U.S. is as innocent as any other countries. Not all but other countries have their own enemies as well. Be careful what you say about the U.S. cuz you may not be right. on the other hand, if U.S. had something to do with it then I would gulp.

By the way, my heart goes out to the London people. Praying that there won't be a high rate of deaths. My prayers and thoughts are with them!
 
Taylor said:
I haven't heard a peep out of all the anti-bush people who say terrorism is not a threat. This could have easily been here in the US as it was in London or what happened in Spain. Its a worldwide problem that needs to be taken care of. Bush and Blair may have gotten the bees stirred up, but they didn't invent these terrorist organizations that have been festering like a cancer for decades. Many people act like if you turn your back and don't look, then the problem isn't there. It would be nice to think that things worked that way, but they don't.
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Taylor,

There are a lot of people who may be anti-Bush in this country, but that doesn't mean they don't think terrorism isn't a threat.

Beginning with Carter, all of our presidents have responded to the threat of terrorism during their terms. If you want to take a stroll down memory lane we can.

Terrorism has been around a hell of a long time.

RebelGirl said:
How would you know for sure if its from U.S. issues? U.S.
is as innocent as any other countries.
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RebelGirl,

Unfortunately the U.S. isn't as innocent as you think. We have plenty of things to be ashamed of -- there have been atrocities committed under our flag.

And you are correct, we aren't the only country with plenty to be ashamed of.

This isn't the reason terrorists are attacking civilized countries though.

They are doing it because they've been brainwashed into believing a very violent Wahhabist interpretation of Islam. This is how they justify the killing of innocent people.

Imagine if there were Christians in the U.S. who believed so strongly in their faith that they would kill innocent people in the name of god because they think that non-Christians are sinners and deserve to die because of it.
 
now they will have high security such as routine of taking off shoes and hats, security guards check in your purse, bags and things.... and longgggg line.

you watch!!! :pissed:

See I told you it could be Saturn in Leo, ahhhhh!!! :eek:
 
Pvt. Parts,
I never said past presidents never did anything...I don't believe they did enough and what was often done wasn't positive.

The US really needs to rethink its foreign policy, but when it comes to peoples attitudes, I get tired of the the 'If its not within our borders, it doesn't concern us'. Everybody in this world has a stake in how things play out worldwide, from terrorism in the Middle East to starvation in Africa.

I do believe the US has had a lot to do with the cause of whats taking place and there is a lot that should have been corrected a long time ago and a lot still needs to be corrected.

To put it into a smaller picture, it reminds me a lot of the city I live in. Our 'bad neighborhoods' are very well hidden from most of the city and many residents feel that 'If I don't see it, it isn't there'. What they fail to understand is that whatever crime happens in these project neighborhoods spill over into the rest of the city in the form of crime, such as carjackings, robberies, shootings, stabbings, etc. If these project neighborhoods were cleaned up, it would have a positive effect on the rest of the city, even in the neighborhoods where people can't see those same projects.

Now picture it on a global scale where project countries need to be cleaned up (whether ending terrorism or fighting starvation), it has a positive effect on the world...Just because I can't see it from my front porch, doesn't mean it doesn't exist and something shouldn't be done about it.
 
why terrorists only attack one place at a time? Why can't
the terrorists attack more than one place?
 
Miss*Pinocchio said:
why terrorists only attack one place at a time? Why can't
the terrorists attack more than one place?
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Don't give them any ideas. Just give them the idea to STOP.
 
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