Breaking News: Major Bombings in London

[Kori Ellis]

So far it looks like six bombs at least exploded in their underground transporation system and three bus bombs.

This was during rush hour. It looks really bad.

Tune into CNN.

[Kori Ellis]

Multiple explosions rock London
'Terrible injuries' reported in blasts

Thursday, July 7, 2005; Posted: 6:08 a.m. EDT (10:08 GMT)

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Near simultaneous explosions rocked the London Underground network and three buses at the morning rush hour, police said, causing injuries and prompting officials to shut down the entire underground transport network.

Some media reports said there were fatalities.

The explosions came a day after London was awarded the 2012 Olympics and as the G8 summit was getting underway in Scotland. Initial reports blamed a power surge, but officials were not ruling out a terrorist attack.

"There have been a number of dreadful incidents across London today," said Home Secreatary Charles Clarke, Britain's top law enforcement officer. He said there were "terrible injuries."

The Tube blasts at the height of the rush hour on Thursday were initially blamed on a power surge.

But amid the chaos eyewitnesses reported that a packed double decker bus in the Russell Square area had been severely damaged in a blast.

A second bus was reported to have been damaged in Tavistock Square.

Describing the Russell Square blast, eyewitness Belinda Seabrook told the UK Press Association she saw an explosion rip through the bus as it approached the Square.

"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," she said.

She said the bus was travelling from Euston to Russell Square and had been "packed" with people turned away from Tube stops.

Travellers emerged from underground tunnels covered in blood and soot. Scotland Yard declared the emergency a "major incident."

Emergency services were called to London's Liverpool Street Station after reports of an explosion shortly before 9 a.m.

A short while later, London Underground said there had been "another incident at Edgware Road" station in north west London.

[TheTruth]

FuckinA. If this turns out to be terrorism....Fuck!

[Slomo]

I have a friend who is in London and he said the city is locked down. The target and MO doesn't suggest an IRA attack. Six synchronized explosions unfortunately suggest an Al Kaeda operation.

I was supposed to take the family for a 5 day holiday in London in 10 days to celebrates my daughter's 6 birthday :(

:flipoff @ terrorists

[CrazyOne]

My niece works in downtown London... my brother-in-law is on his way to pick her up. She goes in rather early, so I hope she missed all this.

[bigzak25]

man, Godbless them. i hope it isn't as bad as it sounds... :(

[JoeChalupa]

This looks like a very well planned attack.

[CrazyOne]

If this is al-allah'scaca again... it's time to start tracing the money trail and nuking the source. If these guys are so eager to get to the afterlife, lets give them a hand.

[JoeChalupa]

I heard some part of Al Queda is claiming responsibility.

[Pistons < Spurs]

7 seperate sychronized bombings.....An Al-Qeada group has claimed responsibility on it's website.

[word]

And for you conspiracy theorists, Israel warned 'em it was coming.

[JoeChalupa]

Yeah, I heard Israel gave them a heads up.

[Gerryatrics]

Some of the still pictures are pretty crazy. One in particular shows a double decker bus with it's roof blown off and laying several yards away on top of some other vehicles. Seven seperate attacks reported so far, including at least one report of a suicide bomber. A Jihad cell of Al Qaeda has claimed credit for the attacks. I would take Al Qaeda over the IRA at this point if I had to hazard a guess. Hopefully security will be increased even further in subways and other rail services here in the States, Al Qaeda seems to have a thing for trains now that plane hijacking is off the table. Not a whole lot you can do to stop suicide bombers on transit busses except stay alert and to hope the cells are busted open before they can carry off an attack. I'm off to follow the news some more and maybe get some sleep at some point.

[GrandeDavid]

Kori, I won't tune into CNN (International, in my case) but am gladly following the latest developments on Fox News.

Londoners are a tough breed and historically have overcome terrorist attacks, threats, even heavy air bombings. Once again, the terrorists will not win, life will continue, the G-8 summit will still occur only 500 miles away from the area of central London, which was bombed. More reason to aggressively pursue, disrupt and destroy terrorist networks.

[blaze89]

7 seperate sychronized bombings.....An Al-Qeada group has claimed responsibility on it's website.

But don't they claim many things on that website?

[Ginobili_20_gold_medalist]

Kori, I won't tune into CNN (International, in my case) but am gladly following the latest developments on Fox News.

Londoners are a tough breed and historically have overcome terrorist attacks, threats, even heavy air bombings. Once again, the terrorists will not win, life will continue, the G-8 summit will still occur only 500 miles away from the area of central London, which was bombed. More reason to aggressively pursue, disrupt and destroy terrorist networks.

It doesn't matter what you do really. Terrorism and terrorist groups will always exist as long as hate exists. The war on terror is a noble effort but it's ultimately doomed by human nature. For every terrorist that's killed there's another asshole to take his place.

[CrazyOne]

Joe, you might want to recheck your sources. Israel is claiming that they had no information or clues about this attack.

[JoeChalupa]

Joe, you might want to recheck your sources. Israel is claiming that they had no information or clues about this attack.

Heard it on FoxNews but they've sinced retracted that statement.

Doesn't really matter though does it.

And I agree ..terrorism is here to stay.

[Ginofan]

That is just awful...my thoughts are with the unfortunate ones and their families.

[mookie2001]

FuckinA. If this turns out to be terrorism....Fuck!
?
1. I'm sure it is
2. if it isnt, then what would you call it?

[Clandestino]

early numbers... over 45 dead...

[mookie2001]

parliment now deciding what rights to permantly take away...

no matter who did it we'll continue to regulate on "al queda", in our selected venue of iraq

[Clandestino]

yeah, bc leaving the terrorist haven known as iraq would be a good thing...

[TheTruth]

?
1. I'm sure it is
2. if it isnt, then what would you call it?
When it first happened, they were blaming it on power surges.

[MannyIsGod]

If this is not Al Queda then I'll eat my hat. This fits their signature perfectly and they have a history of going after targets such as transportation.

How safe do you feel? Do think the job we've done securing this country has been well exectuted? I think we're just as unsafe - if not more so - than London in almost every major city in this country. New York and DC may be the 2 cities that actually have very good security in place.

We're on the list of upcoming targets, you can bet your ass. And people shouldn't expect it just to happen in New York City. I almost think that an attack somewhere in the heartland for medium sized city would generate far more fear than another NYC attack.

[Jimcs50]

MANNY IS RIGHT.


European Al-Qaida group claims responsibility
Associated Press

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

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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.''



We need to hunt every Al-Qaida member down and kill him right on the spot.

This is just another reason why we are fighting the wrong enemy in Iraq. We are losing the best of the best every day in our special forces members who would be much better utilized in hunting down the real enemy Al-Qaida.

Bush needs to get his head out of his special interest ass and go after the real enemy and threat to the democratic world.

[Summers]

:( Just awful.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

countdown until a british patriot act 5...4...3....2...

[mookie2001]

the city of london has the worlds most advanced facial recogniton cameras on almost every corner
i cant wait to see what the ol nwo comes up with now

[Slomo]

According to Sky News:
45 dead, almost a 1000 injured of which 150 are believed to be seriously injured.

I am really curious of the muslim reactions in England. I have always believed that the UK has been the most succesful in incorporating different religions in its society.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

the lead article on cnn.com says (quote)

"A previously unknown group, calling itself the Group of al-Qaeda of Jihad Organization in Europe"

why does everyone here refer to it as the general term 'al-qaeda' when it says previously unknown group
Now i have not brushed up on my muslim terrorist group semantics, but does this necessarily mean its the same al-qaeda the usa knows?

[Shelly]

:(

[DrRich]

Both the Madrid and London attacks occured at 8:49; the time the first plane hit the WTC on 911. Truly saddistic cowards!!!

[spurschick]

A group calling itself "The Secret Organization of al-Qaida in Europe''

They're not secret anymore. Wonder how long they've been planning this one. They couldn't have known that London would be awarded the Olympics in 2012 and these bombings don't have any bearing on something that is going to happen years from now. Was it planned around the G8 Summit or was it just a random date they chose?

[MannyIsGod]

Al Queda - from my understanding - is really a loose coallition of groups all around the world.

[MannyIsGod]

They're not secret anymore. Wonder how long they've been planning this one. They couldn't have known that London would be awarded the Olympics in 2012 and these bombings don't have any bearing on something that is going to happen years from now. Was it planned around the G8 Summit or was it just a random date they chose?
Something I was floating in my mind, was whether or not they had a cell in each one of the cities that had a chance to host the Olympics and would trigger one depending on the choice.

I'm not sure what they would accomplish by doing that, but it did cross my mind.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

Al Queda - from my understanding - is really a loose coallition of groups all around the world.


typical americans like Evan Mariott will just hear 'al-qaeda' though, and typical newspapers will have the letters 'al-qaeda' bigger than all others

[MannyIsGod]

typical americans like Evan Mariott will just hear 'al-qaeda' though, and typical newspapers will have the letters 'al-qaeda' bigger than all others
Well, it is Al Queda. I'm not following what your point is?

[spurschick]

I would hate to have to ride the NY subway every day.

[mookie2001]

cant be faded just likes to say evan marriot
ROFL

[Clandestino]

cant be faded just likes to say evan marriot
ROFL

do you think any tahoes were used in this?

[Cant_Be_Faded]

Well, it is Al Queda. I'm not following what your point is?


My point is the people who pulled this off potentially have no concrete intimate friendship or relationship with those that pulled off 9/11 yet the typical Evan Mariott will blindly believe so and be that much quicker to giving away our freedoms to the W

[Slomo]

Both the Madrid and London attacks occured at 8:49; the time the first plane hit the WTC on 911. Truly saddistic cowards!!!
I'm not trying to pick up a fight, but are you sure that Madrid's explosions happenned at 8:49? I remember something like 7:30 local time.

The first plane hit the WTC at 8:46 NY time, correct?

I'm asking because if I'm wrong and you're correct there would be very little doubt to who is responsible for the London attack.

[MannyIsGod]

My point is the people who pulled this off potentially have no concrete intimate friendship or relationship with those that pulled off 9/11 yet the typical Evan Mariott will blindly believe so and be that much quicker to giving away our freedoms to the W
You're wrong. Al Queda groups all work together and share money. While their organization has changed since 9/11 to be a much looser set of smaller groups. they still operate together. That makes this group directly connected to the group that pulled off 9/11.

[MannyIsGod]

I'm not trying to pick up a fight, but are you sure that Madrid's explosions happenned at 8:49? I remember something like 7:30 local time.

The first plane hit the WTC at 8:46 NY time, correct?

I'm asking because if I'm wrong and you're correct there would be very little doubt to who is responsible for the London attack.
Quite honestly, I think even if you're correct there is very little doubt. Attacks of this magnitude, organizatoin, and signature all point to Al Queda.

[1Parker1]

I would hate to have to ride the NY subway every day.


I hate riding the Sub in Phillly! That's why I take my car downtown and just pay 15-20 bucks for parking... :depressed

[DrRich]

I'm not trying to pick up a fight, but are you sure that Madrid's explosions happenned at 8:49? I remember something like 7:30 local time.

The first plane hit the WTC at 8:46 NY time, correct?

I'm asking because if I'm wrong and you're correct there would be very little doubt to who is responsible for the London attack.


The time might be 8:46 (maybe I'm dyslexic :lol), but I saw it on GMA this morning and the terrorism expert(can't remeber his name) siad that all three attacks occurred at the same time!!

Yeah, little doubt on who's responsible!!

[Slomo]

Quite honestly, I think even if you're correct there is very little doubt. Attacks of this magnitude, organizatoin, and signature all point to Al Queda.
More than the magnitude is the coordinated and well organized manner that this attacks are being executed that has become the Al Qaeda signature.

I'm just saying that if those times are correct (and my googling so far does not confirm it) there would be little or no doubt that it is in fact an Al Qaeda attack. I'm convinced that it was in fact those bastards again, but I still like to have my convictions backed up by facts.

[Slomo]

The time might be 8:46 (maybe I'm dyslexic :lol), but I saw it on GMA this morning and the terrorism expert(can't remeber his name) siad that all three attacks occurred at the same time!!

Yeah, little doubt on who's responsible!!
8:46 is close enough for me, it's the Madrid time that doesn't add up.

[SWC Bonfire]

My point is the people who pulled this off potentially have no concrete intimate friendship or relationship with those that pulled off 9/11 yet the typical Evan Mariott will blindly believe so and be that much quicker to giving away our freedoms to the W

I'm pretty sure that none of the hijackers from 9/11 participated in this bombing...because they all died.

Sure, these bombings had nothing to do with NY or Madrid. If we just would leave them alone, they would just go away... they in no way, shape, form or means are united in hatred of western civilization not because of what we do, but solely based on what we represent. Sticking our head in the sand will make it go away.

[mookie2001]

cant be faded post has been taken out of context

and he said potentially

[MannyIsGod]

More than the magnitude is the coordinated and well organized manner that this attacks are being executed that has become the Al Qaeda signature.

I'm just saying that if those times are correct (and my googling so far does not confirm it) there would be little or no doubt that it is in fact an Al Qaeda attack. I'm convinced that it was in fact those bastards again, but I still like to have my convictions backed up by facts.
Fair enough. But yeah, I know which way my terrorist compass is pointing right now.

[MannyIsGod]

cant be faded post has been taken out of context

and he said potentially
Yeah, but I know the line of thinking. You have one group of people who claim everything is related to 9/11. Then you have another group who thinks that nothing is related to 9/11.

I'm just tired of all the rhetoric that gets thrown around while the very few people ever care to address the facts in a spinless manner.

[SWC Bonfire]

cant be faded post has been taken out of context

and he said potentially

OK.

I'm sure that due to the close proximity to the G8 summit they are trying to eliminate ecoterrorist/extremist groups from their investigation.

But most likely Al Queda.

[mookie2001]

we need a bill o'reilly-esque poster

[GrandeDavid]

If this is not Al Queda then I'll eat my hat. This fits their signature perfectly and they have a history of going after targets such as transportation.

How safe do you feel? Do think the job we've done securing this country has been well exectuted? I think we're just as unsafe - if not more so - than London in almost every major city in this country. New York and DC may be the 2 cities that actually have very good security in place.

We're on the list of upcoming targets, you can bet your ass. And people shouldn't expect it just to happen in New York City. I almost think that an attack somewhere in the heartland for medium sized city would generate far more fear than another NYC attack.

I, personally, feel safe from terrorism not just while in Brazil, but back in the U.S. as well. I simply don't think about it. Obviously free societies are vulnerable to attacks, and I agree that a less obvious target is probably due next. But I'm not going to give it two thoughts. Unfortunately, I accept that that's how today's world works. Hatred continues to exist and flourish and with advancements in communication and technology, terrorists can gain an upper hand. But, hey, it can be a dangerous world.

[JoeChalupa]

According to Sky News:
45 dead, almost a 1000 injured of which 150 are believed to be seriously injured.

I am really curious of the muslim reactions in England. I have always believed that the UK has been the most succesful in incorporating different religions in its society.

The Mayor of London gave a powerful speech regarding London's citizens living together crossing religious and racial boundaries.
Very moving indeed.

[Bandit2981]

al qaida? my money was on some Iraqi citizens from that land of evil...my condolences to the people of london, very sad indeed

[SpursWoman]

Any bets going on how long it will be before the first article materializes proclaiming the George W. Bush White House as orchestrating the whole event?





A horrible tragedy. :(

[SWC Bonfire]

I wonder if they will get a "BLAIR KNEW" headline?

I hope not.

[tlongII]

Terrible news. I've ridden the tube when I was in London a couple of years ago. They have a terrific mass transportation system there. We need to find Osama.

[easjer]

My friend Tamsyn and her husband and family were foremost in my mind this morning. As soon as I got to work, I went to email her, thinking they were safe in Oxford (where she, her husband and sister live). My heart nearly stopped to see an email from her begining with the line "We arrived in London back from the States this morning . . ." They took the red eye, got into London about 7, and got on a bus a little after 8. They were on the last bus out of London, safe but badly shaken up. They were greatly relieved to see Tata at home waiting for them - she'd intended to head into London today.



I say that, because it's the closest I've come to having someone I care about injured in a terrorist attack. My brother is in Iraq right now (left the day after Christmas with that group from Ft. Sam).

I hate all of this. It's sad and scary and angering. I do believe that this is directed at the G8 conference, and even though lives have been lost, London has gotten off fairly lightly - I pray this is all they get.

Terrorism won't go away, because the people who perpetuate it are people who revel in chaos and disorder. Few of the planners actually believe in the 'cause' (whatever cause that is) - they believe in terror and killing innocents. There is little governments can do about it, but while they try, civil rights begin to erode, and the always delicate balance of freedom and security is placed in even higher jeopardy.

I believe that it should be addressed, and that we shouldn't ignore it or hope it goes away. As long as we remain a world power, we remain a threat. Terrorism won't disappear, and ignoring it is a false hope that it merely strikes elsewhere. I am glad that we went to Iraq and Afghanistan, but afraid that we will pull out too soon because Americans are impatient and want it to be done. If we leave too soon they merely fall into a different despots hands and cause more havoc.

Do I feel more secure today than before 9/11? No - I feel more vulnerable. Ignorance and bliss, you understand. I live in Houston and can recite a litany of reasons Houston is on an attack list - 4th largest city in the nation, petro-chemical refineries that can be fired on from the highway, three major sports teams, energy industry leaders, NASA, high level research, four well placed bombs disabling all traffic and transportation capabilities, tapes seized from an Al-Queda scout who was searching for ways to blow places up.

So no, I do not feel secure - I didn't realize all these things before, but now I do, and I know further how little has been done to increase the security with these things.

And it makes me no more secure to know that Houston is not the only city taking stock like this - nearly every city of any size is doing the same, just as they did in the 50's atmoic bomb scares. It's an odd point of pride, wanting to be high on the list of places to be attacked.

I'm no more secure because my father was stopped at the airport when escorting my brother to his plane to return to Iraq. A nice boarding agent saw what was happening and gave my dad a boarding pass so he could wait with him. Dad had two pocket knives on him and was stopped by 8 police men, strip searched, humiliated and finally allowed to put the knives back in his truck (mind you, he never expected to be allowed beyond security check point, he wasn't boarding a flight), and on his return, they found a nail clipper on his keychain and threatened to arrest him. Two hours spent on this guy who wasn't flying and clearly cooperated by immediately handing over his pocket knives before going through the security check point. Had someone else had something, he might of snuck through in the ruckus over the pocket knives. It's ridiculous.

It's necessary. But not more secure.

[Mr. Ash]

8:46 is close enough for me, it's the Madrid time that doesn't add up.

Here's a timeline (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8497343/) from MSNBC. First attack at 8:51, last one at 9:47. The bombs didn't all go off at the exact same time, as was reported earlier.

[easjer]

From my friend Tamsyn:
"Tata's [her sister] boy rang her to say that his father (a London policeman) said that on no circumstances was she to go to London - apparently, they'd located devices on a number of buses which hadn't gone off.

So yes, it sounds as if it might have been worse. I am now feeling sorry for the crowd of forty fifth graders going on tour of London who were on our flight."

There's some first hand that hasn't been reported yet. It could have been much bigger.

[underoath]

This is horrible. R.I.P. to all those.

[Bandit2981]

now Bush has another reason to stay in Iraq.
the Iraqis were responsible for the London bombings? oh right, its that "osama been forgotten" guy that Cheney and Goss supposedly know where he is but wont go after him

[SpursWoman]

:rolleyes

[Marcus Bryant]

Yep. All Bush's fault.

[Bandit2981]

It's not all Bush's fault, but he's obviously a major factor in the rise of these attacks worldwide

[Marcus Bryant]

Yep. All Bush's fault.

[Jimcs50]

Yep. All Bush's fault.

Bush has blood on his hands, just as everyone involved with our foreign policy.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

okay manny, swc, what you say is plausible but since when did Al fucking Qaeda become the only terrorist organization on the planet earth, when did they become the only "organization" capable of committing acts of terrorism, why is it that people on this forum instantly think "al qaeda" when they see an act of terrorism

i dont think that all terrorist acts are completely not related to 9/11 but i do know the word al qaeda did and does appear bigger than every other word in magazines/newspapers and people never mentioned al qaeda when the oklahoma city bombing took place, moreover they did not mention al qaeda 10 minutes after it happened.....

u talk of them being the only ones capable of terorrism of that magnitude, well last i saw only 37 have died in england and i think more than that might have died in oklahoma city...

[spurschick]

okay manny, swc, what you say is plausible but since when did Al fucking Qaeda become the only terrorist organization on the planet earth, when did they become the only "organization" capable of committing acts of terrorism, why is it that so many people on this forum instantly think "al qaeda" when they see an act of terrorism

i dont think al qaeda did not do anything but i do know the word al qaeda did and does appear bigger than every other word in magazines/newspapers and people never mentioned al qaeda when the oklahoma city bombing took place, moreover they did not mention al qaeda 10 minutes after it happened.....

u talk of them being the only ones capable of terorrism of that magnitude, well last i saw only 37 have died in england and i think more than that might have died in oklahoma city...

My response to this is 9/11. Personally, I had never heard of Al Qaeda before that. IMO, the reason that the words "Al Qaeda" are more prominent is that 9/11 was so massive.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

My response to this is 9/11. Personally, I had never heard of Al Qaeda before that. IMO, the reason that the words "Al Qaeda" are more prominent is that 9/11 was so massive.


yeah of course. Now the common Mariott will instantly think 'al qaeda' after every terrorist act for the remainder of our country's existance.

Why isn't it possible or plausible for another coalition of money laundering rich ass psychos can't pull off terrorism? Why can't they use the INTERNET to find out al-qaeda did their attacks at that certain time and then pull theirs off at that time too?

[spurschick]

yeah of course. Now the common Mariott will instantly think 'al qaeda' after every terrorist act for the remainder of our country's existance.

Why isn't it possible or plausible for another coalition of money laundering rich ass psychos can't pull off terrorism? Why can't they use the INTERNET to find out al-qaeda did their attacks at that certain time and then pull theirs off at that time too?

It is possible and plausible, but you have to admit that Al Qaeda put themselves front and center on the terrorist map with 9/11. Like I said, I didn't know about them before them. I don't know about these other groups that you speak of now. I'm hoping I won't know about them or hear about them any time soon.