Where’s Catnip?
Here is the Sky News article.
Here’s more:
At least three of the suspected bombers came from the West Yorkshire region, which includes Leeds, said Peter Clarke, head of the Metropolitan Police anti-terrorist branch.
Closed-circuit TV video showed that all four had arrived at King’s Cross station by 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, about 20 minutes before the blasts began that killed at least 52 people, Clarke said.
In a Scotland Yard news conference, Clarke said police had “strong forensic and other evidence” that the man who carried a bomb onto a subway train that exploded between the Aldgate and Liverpool Street stations had died in the blast, and they were awaiting confirmation from the coroner. Police were trying to determine whether the other three also died in the explosions.
link
I was kind of shocked that they said they found four suicide bombers … I haven’t closely read all the news stories since last week, but had assumed some were left in parcels or backpacks.
Terrorists: wankerish amateurs
Expert fears explosives came from military
… or .. you know, maybe not….
Christophe Chaboud, the head of the French Anti-Terrorism Co-ordination Unit, said the explosives could have come from the Balkans or may have been sourced from a military establishment by someone on the inside.
Mr Chaboud, one of five top officials sent by Paris to London immediately after Thursday’s attacks, said: “The explosives appear to be of military origin, which is very worrying.”
Sadly, I’ve only been to Heathrow in the UK. What are we looking at here, Boo?
(And what’s going on in Israel? I was typing when the news flashed so I missed it.)
I asked for some info at EuroTrib. You are looking at England (Scotland detached), and you can see Yorkshire is in the north, far from London.
I’m told this is a working class area, and there may be violence against the Muslim community there. They are not a cosmopolitan crowd up there.
I don’t want to slight Yorkshire though, since I don’t know much about it.
Here’s a map. West Yorkshire aka West Riding.
An industrial/post-industrial area with a significant sense of anger and alienation among many of the working class young. Hit hard in the Thatcher years and never quite recovered. Most Muslims stem from southeast Asia, esp. Pakistan.
I just got home from a free community Calgary Stampede pancake breakfast where I danced a circle dance with aboriginal dancers and neighbours, saw the police and air ambulance helicopters up close, petted horses, llamas, dogs, and a burro and a calf, heard a Willie Nelson joke (what has 100 legs and four teeth? the front row of a Willie Nelson concert), listened to a Montana high school band, almost got my face painted, got free cat treats, just missed my local Conservative politician (he’s lucky) and generally had a fun time!
You asked. 🙂
I’ve been in way too much pain the last few days to sit for any length of time, but walking around this morning was okay.
Now – as for this updated London bombing news – I see there’s no mention of Al Quaeda and news reports are saying that perhaps one of the missing men was from Pakistan. Hmm…
is why the police had to call in the military to set off explosives to get into the house in Leeds where they think some suspects resided. Did it really require military explosives? Couldn’t they have just chopped down the door or broken a window? What sort of a place was it –some iron-lined bunker?
The police suspected the house contained explosives so they initiated a controlled explosion after clearing the area. This is a basic procedure to protect life and in the UK is carried out by the army.
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● 4th explosion on bus killed suspected terrorist
● anti-terror squad search six homes in area and made a number of arrests of persons directly connected to the London bombings
● suspected car found used by terrorists
Police stand guard over a cordon in Beeston, near Leeds, England Tuesday July 12, 2005, after officers raided five residential premises in West Yorkshire in connection with last week’s London bombings. Scotland Yard said the raids were part of an ‘intelligence-led operation’. (AP Photo)
Latest News … all 4 terrorists died in explosion
All four bombers, born in Britain are dead. Came from West-Yorkshire area. On the trains, Scotland Yard now believes they were suicide bombers.
All four men arrived by train at Kings Cross Station at 08:30am. Personal documents have been found of 3 of the 4 men close to scene of the explosion. One of the men was reported as missing by his family after 10am the morning of July 7th.
A lot of CCTV footage has been very helpful.
BBC News — Day’s developments: At a glance
Police have revealed they believe all four London bombers died in the blasts, following a series of raids and an arrest. The BBC News website is covering events as they unfold — TIMELINE OF TODAY —
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Related Diaries/Comments @BooMan by Oui
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First, be careful about terminology. The police are not saying these are suicide bomber but that those who were carrying them were killed in the explosions (three are confirmed, one is presumed as evidence gathered from the deep tunnel site points that way).
There is some evidence (reports of somebody funbling with a bag, the bus explosion at waist rather than floor level and the diversion of the bus) that the “bus bomb” was not intended to go off where it did. The inference is that the bombers were carrying the bombs which were set off by timers to provide the synchronisation of the three main ones.
Standard vigilence by passengers very likely meant that the Madrid technique of leaving the bombs on the trains for some distance would not work. It is even possible that the mules were told the wrong times and had been briefed that they had enough time to get off at a station and leave the bomb to explode a few minutes later.
Snippets are emerging in the continuous BBC News coverage. Some of the experts sometimes go “off message” and let slip things that are not officially in the public domain. One was an explosives expert who let slip the police had found explosives manufactuing ingredients in one of the houses in Leeds. Subject to confirmation, this means the explosives were not “military grade” but made in that bomb factory. The basic ingredients could have been ought in small qualtities to not arouse suspicion.
All four I believe are British “of Pakistani origin”. One was reported missing by their family last Thursday.
As far as the controlled explosions go, this is standard practice to avoid endangering police unnecessarily. In the case of the car found in Luton train station car park, there have been three so far. Obviously these are to blow the trunk and engine covers and open a door so that a robotic examination can confirm that no booby traps are in it. The same procedure was used for one of the houses in Leeds.
let’s take this seriously then.
Scenario: four young men are recruited for a train-bombing mission. They are given backpacks with 10 lb bombs inside set on timers. They are told that the bombs will explode at a certain time.
In fact, the bombs are set to blow at a different time, perhaps 10-15 minutes earlier. This will assure that the bombers die in the explosions.
Traces of explosives are left in one, or more of their homes. But these traces are of a different sort than what is used in the bombing.
This set of facts is consistent with any sophisticated intelligence agency, even al-Qaeda.
From this set of facts, we would still have no idea who was behind it.
Why no claim of responsibility?
Why were you looking for me, btw?
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Crucial to find out forensic evidence on explosives, detonators and timing device. This is what was uncovered very quickly in Spain, and is an indication whether investigation in London is open or another Blair white-wash.
Which foreign units are supporting Scotland Yard and who leads the investigation?
Of course, UK parliament should take initiative and start an inquiry asap. Needs to put pressure on the Blair failures.
My own thought, does not rule out a link-up in the UK between Islamists and the RIRA. The RIRA support in logistics, explosives and the Islamists for the execution in close cooperation of its planning. The Good Friday agreement lies in shatters and Sein Finn/IRA are once again isolated.
I have a diary just about ready to look at this angle. Not opportune yet in timing with recent attack.
by Oui on Mon Jul 11th, 2005 at 02:26:05 PM PDT
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Suspected of receiving funds from sympathizers in the United States and of attempting to buy weapons from US gun dealers. RIRA also is reported to have purchased sophisticated weapons from the Balkans, and to have taken materials from Provisional IRA arms dumps in the later 1990s.
Moreover, the units are thought to have ample supplies of explosives smuggled from the Balkans, including military-type bombs that were manufactured in former Eastern Bloc countries. These ‘lunchbox’ bombs were used at Hammersmith Bridge in June 2000 and near Ealing rail station in July 2000, and at the post office depot attacks at Hendon in 2001.
IRA Links to Arab Terror
Reciprocal favor, especially now the NI peace agreement is at a stalemate, with isolation for Sein Finn/IRA. See Bush cold shoulders on St. Patrick’s day in US and position of Congress.
say they are convinced that the cell responsible for the bombings had executed a well-thought-out plan. One official said the cell’s attack plan was “highly sophisticated” and “meticulously planned.”
British investigators are being helped with the slow forensics work by teams from the United States, Spain and France. But Britain has a lot of experience doing such work.
In the 1990’s, the Irish Republican Army used Semtex B, a Czech-made substance that is often nearly impossible to detect. British antiterrorist police discovered that the bombing of London’s Canary Wharf district used Semtex B, and it was enough for then to conclude the I.R.A. was behind the bombing.
A Spanish official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, denied a Spanish press report that suggested that 80 pounds of bomb material was still missing from the dynamite used in the Madrid train bombings.
EXPLOSIFS D’ORIGINE MILITAIRE
L’explosif utilisé dans les 4 attentats de Londres jeudi était probablement un plastic d’origine militaire, estiment plusieurs experts en comparant la petite taille des engins à l’ampleur des dégâts.
A deadly haul of explosives were stolen from the RAF yesterday. It is feared dissident Republicans stole the haul of Semtex. It is not known why the RAF van was parked outside the hotel in Kent. Privately, detectives are furious that the van was left unattended.
Questions that ‘inquiring minds’ might ask: Why do the ‘RAF’ carry around Semtex – not a sanctioned Brit Army explosive in vans, then abandon them and go into bar and get pissed and allow local tealeaves to rip it off? Kent is the home of the SAS, Brit. Intell ops like the FRU.
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Related Diaries/Comments @BooMan by Oui
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