On Thursday 7th July 2005, 52 people were killed after three bombs exploded on the London Underground and on the Number 30 double-decker bus in Tavistock Square in London.
At 8:50am, three bombs exploded on the Underground within 50 seconds of each other at King's Cross, Edgware Road and Aldgate stations, then the bus bomb exploded about an hour later.
Twenty-six people (half of all the 7/7 victims) were killed at King's Cross, six at Edgware Road, seven at Aldgate and thirteen on the bus.
The four terrorists also died - Western Europe's first ever suicide bombers. And all of them were British.
7/7 was, and still is, Britain's worst terror attack after the 1988 Lockerbie disaster, when a Boeing 747 exploded over the town of Lockerbie killing 270 people, and the deadliest attack on London since a V2 rocket killed 131 people in Stepney on 27 March 1945.
Yesterday was the fourth anniversary of the atrocity, and it was marked by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall unveiling the new 7/7 memorial, which consists of 52 stainless steel pillars, each 11.5 feet tall.
The pillars are grouped into four clusters, symbolising the four attack sites - King's Cross, Aldgate and Edgware Road on the Underground and Tavistock Square, where the last of the explosions hit the number 30 bus.
The casting process has ensured that each stelae - while produced from the same mould - has unique characteristics.
The Prince told the crowd: 'I believe the date of the London bombings is etched vividly on all our minds, as a brutal intrusion into the lives of thousands of people.
'Tragically, as we know, some were not so fortunate as to walk away from what happened on that awful day, and it is them that we seek to honour with the memorial which has been erected here in Hyde Park in their memory.'
Also pictured is Mahmood Hussain, the father of 18-year-old Hasib, the terrorist who detonated his bomb on the bus which killed 13 people and himself.
The father was seen mourning him at an unmarked grave in Leeds, West Yorkshire where three of the bombers, including Habib Hussain,were from.
Two faces of atrocity: Four years on, a father weeps at the graveside of his 7/7 BOMBER son . . . as the victims' shattered families gather to remember them
By Sam Greenhill
08th July 2009
Daily Mail
Four years to the minute since the last of the 7/7 bombs exploded, a father falls to his knees at the grave of the son who died in the blast.
Yet the young man he is mourning at this unmarked grave in a Leeds cemetery was no victim.
He was Hasib Hussain - the 18-year-old who took 13 lives as well as his own when he detonated his bomb on the number 30 bus in Tavistock Square.
Leeds: Mahmood Hussain, the father of the Tavistock Square bus bomber, at his son's graveside
At precisely the same time that Mahmood Hussain mourned the death of his youngest son, 200 miles away relatives and friends of the victims of the attack gathered for the unveiling of a permanent memorial.
Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall and Gordon Brown joined mourners in the rain at 9.47am, the exact moment when the last of the four bombs was detonated, at the unveiling of a memorial in Hyde Park.
In Leeds, Mr Hussain was remembering his son. An onlooker said: 'He arrived around alone at 9.30am and was waiting around calmly. But as soon as it reached 9.47am he fell to his knees, burying his head in his hands. He seemed utterly devastated.'
At that moment, relatives of the 52 victims of the 7/7 Tube bombings were paying special tribute to their lost loved ones.
London: In the rain at Hyde Park, Prince Charles lays a wreath at the memorial to the 7/7 victims
The £1m monument is made of 52 unique stainless steel columns, grouped in four clusters to reflect the locations - Tavistock Square, Edgware Road, King’s Cross and Aldgate - where four suicide bombers detonated their rucksack bombs, shattering the lives of so many.
As guests assembled for the ceremony, they wandered among the
columns, touching them and reading the names inscribed on a plaque placed at the site between the park’s Lover’s Walk and Park Lane.
Charlotte Harris - a close friend of one of the July 7th victims, Jennifer Nicholson, who was killed at Edgware Road - crouches in contemplation at the memorial
Enlarge
A young boy in smart shirt and tie holds a bouquet of flowers while two women hold each other close for comfort as they read the names on the plaque
Prince Charles shelters beneath an umbrella as he meets relatives of those killed in the 2005 bombing
Enlarge
A distraught relative grieves for her loved ones while others stand in silence to remember the dead
Prince Charles sits through the service, left, and greets Gordon Brown and his wife
The Prince told the crowd: 'I believe the date of the London bombings is etched vividly on all our minds, as a brutal intrusion into the lives of thousands of people.
'Tragically, as we know, some were not so fortunate as to walk away from what happened on that awful day, and it is them that we seek to honour with the memorial which has been erected here in Hyde Park in their memory.'
Charles went on to say that he and his wife wanted to express 'our deeply held grief and anguish at the appalling aberrations in the human consciousness which produced such cruel and mindless carnage'.
He also praised the 'resilience and fortitude of the British people' and said it was their indomitable spirit, together with the commitment and compassion of the emergency services, that got the country through July 7 and the days and weeks that followed.
Veteran broadcaster Sir Trevor MacDonald, who was hosting the ceremony, slowly and solemnly read the name of every person killed in the London bombings and at the end of the roll call told the families and survivors: 'We will remember them all.'
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, also with cabinet minister Tessa Jowell, arrive at the memorial service
In memory: The 7/7 memorial on Hyde Park is a permanent fixture, composed of four clusters of pillars and a plaque containing the names of the victims
A minute's silence was then held as the rain, which had held off for much of the ceremony, began to fall heavily. The crowd stood with their heads bowed as traffic from nearby Park Lane rumbled by.
The Prince and the Duchess were then invited forward to lay wreaths, with Charles placing a floral tribute made up of his Prince of Wales feathers on behalf of the nation in front of a plaque bearing the names of all 52 victims, while Camilla left her own tribute of flowers on behalf of the families.
As they did so, composer Christian Forshaw, accompanied by a string quartet and a percussionist, played his piece Remembrance specially commissioned for today's ceremony.
Forshaw played an alto saxophone as the drummer played a steady rhythm, adding to the sombre mood.
Bereaved relatives were then invited to read their own tributes to their loved ones and many placed single white or red roses in urns on either side of the memorial plaque while others left bouquets.
The rain stayed away for most of the ceremony, although it fell heavily near the end. The Duchess of Cornwall (second right) met families following the service
Saba Mozakka, 28, one of six relatives on the memorial's project board which helped create the monument, said: 'We think it is truly incredible and reflects the importance of the people commemorated.'
Ms Mozakka's mother, Behnaz Mozakka, 47, a biomedical officer, was killed on a Piccadilly line train while commuting to work.
She added: 'One of the fantastic things about the monument is that it reflects the individual and the collective and shows the connectivity of events.'
There was a relaxed atmosphere in Hyde Park before the unveiling ceremony began.
As the families waited for Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall to arrive, many spent time walking around the 52 stainless steel columns, running their hands over the surfaces of the metal structures and also reading the names inscribed on a plaque nearby.
Nearby, a 10-piece brass ensemble from the Guildhall School of Music entertained them with well-known tunes and, for a while, the sun shone before showers sent people scurrying under trees for shelter.
Former London mayor Ken Livingstone was among the 700 invited guests, who included survivors and victims' relatives.
He praised the striking design for the memorial, saying: 'I think it's just exactly right. Often, it's very difficult to do something like this and get it right, but I think everyone has done a great job.'
Speaking about the day when the bombs exploded, Mr Livingstone said: 'On the day, what drives you is the work that's got to be done, but, in the weeks and months afterwards, I met many families at various memorials and it was all incredibly painful.'
Tory leader Mr Cameron also had a positive response to the monument.
He said: 'I think it's very brilliantly put together. It seems also very fitting the way they've grouped the columns around the four areas where the bombs went off.
'Talking to some of the bereaved, they were all involved in this design and all like it and you can see people reacting to it positively.
'They're walking up and touching it - it's very positive and very good.'
The architects, designers and other team members responsible for the memorial will meet the royal couple who will also spend time with survivors of the attacks, and others involved in the rescue operation.
Mr Johnson said: 'This memorial echoes the steely determination shown by Londoners in the days following the bombings.
'We have done much to make London safer, but today reminds us that London's strength ultimately lies with its people.'
Horrified survivors onboard the Number 30 bus in Tavistock Square just seconds after it was ripped apart by an explosion which killed 13 passengers
Before the service, major new inquiry into the bombing was launched which will re-examine what evidence was available to security chiefs before the 7/7 bombings, and how the Government's emergency Cobra committee responded to the attack.
A previous investigation decided it was 'understandable and reasonable' that the terrorists had not been detected before the attack, but many relatives branded this a 'complete whitewash'.
The new inquiry will focus on Cobra, which was branded bureaucratic, overly political and cumbersome by Andy Hayman, the former head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorist operations.
The House of Commons Home Affairs Committee is expected to call senior intelligence officials to give evidence.
In its report on the Government's anti-terror strategy, published today, the committee warned the London Underground was still 'extremely vulnerable' to terrorist attack.
The four bombers: Above, Jermaine Lindsay and Hasib Hussain and, below, Tanweer Shehzad and Mohammad Sidique Khan
Committee chairman Keith Vaz MP said Cobra was a 'nonsensical system that drags people away from the serious job in hand to attend a crisis meeting'.
He added: 'The former Metropolitan Police Counter-Terrorism chief Andy Hayman recently raised some questions about the work of Cobra and we will be considering its effectiveness as the next stage of our scrutiny in this area.'
Survivors of the 7/7 attacks and relatives of victims have called for a full public inquiry, modelled on the commission that investigated the 9/11 attacks in the U.S.
In its report, the committee criticises Transport for London for inadequate communications on the day of the attack.
It says the 2012 Olympics is 'another critical area of vulnerability'.
The report concludes: 'The UK continues to face a sustained and extremely grave threat from terrorism.
'After a slow start, the Government has done a great deal to improve its counter-terrorism structures and now has an impressive approach to the issue.
'However, more work remains to be done. The threats have not lessened significantly, nor do we expect them to do so in the immediate future.'
THE 52 VICTIMS
King's Cross bomb
At 8:50am, three bombs exploded on the Underground within 50 seconds of each other at King's Cross, Edgware Road and Aldgate stations, then the bus bomb exploded about an hour later.
Twenty-six people (half of all the 7/7 victims) were killed at King's Cross, six at Edgware Road, seven at Aldgate and thirteen on the bus.
The four terrorists also died - Western Europe's first ever suicide bombers. And all of them were British.
7/7 was, and still is, Britain's worst terror attack after the 1988 Lockerbie disaster, when a Boeing 747 exploded over the town of Lockerbie killing 270 people, and the deadliest attack on London since a V2 rocket killed 131 people in Stepney on 27 March 1945.
Yesterday was the fourth anniversary of the atrocity, and it was marked by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall unveiling the new 7/7 memorial, which consists of 52 stainless steel pillars, each 11.5 feet tall.
The pillars are grouped into four clusters, symbolising the four attack sites - King's Cross, Aldgate and Edgware Road on the Underground and Tavistock Square, where the last of the explosions hit the number 30 bus.
The casting process has ensured that each stelae - while produced from the same mould - has unique characteristics.
The Prince told the crowd: 'I believe the date of the London bombings is etched vividly on all our minds, as a brutal intrusion into the lives of thousands of people.
'Tragically, as we know, some were not so fortunate as to walk away from what happened on that awful day, and it is them that we seek to honour with the memorial which has been erected here in Hyde Park in their memory.'
Also pictured is Mahmood Hussain, the father of 18-year-old Hasib, the terrorist who detonated his bomb on the bus which killed 13 people and himself.
The father was seen mourning him at an unmarked grave in Leeds, West Yorkshire where three of the bombers, including Habib Hussain,were from.
Two faces of atrocity: Four years on, a father weeps at the graveside of his 7/7 BOMBER son . . . as the victims' shattered families gather to remember them
By Sam Greenhill
08th July 2009
Daily Mail
Four years to the minute since the last of the 7/7 bombs exploded, a father falls to his knees at the grave of the son who died in the blast.
Yet the young man he is mourning at this unmarked grave in a Leeds cemetery was no victim.
He was Hasib Hussain - the 18-year-old who took 13 lives as well as his own when he detonated his bomb on the number 30 bus in Tavistock Square.
Leeds: Mahmood Hussain, the father of the Tavistock Square bus bomber, at his son's graveside
At precisely the same time that Mahmood Hussain mourned the death of his youngest son, 200 miles away relatives and friends of the victims of the attack gathered for the unveiling of a permanent memorial.
Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall and Gordon Brown joined mourners in the rain at 9.47am, the exact moment when the last of the four bombs was detonated, at the unveiling of a memorial in Hyde Park.
In Leeds, Mr Hussain was remembering his son. An onlooker said: 'He arrived around alone at 9.30am and was waiting around calmly. But as soon as it reached 9.47am he fell to his knees, burying his head in his hands. He seemed utterly devastated.'
At that moment, relatives of the 52 victims of the 7/7 Tube bombings were paying special tribute to their lost loved ones.
London: In the rain at Hyde Park, Prince Charles lays a wreath at the memorial to the 7/7 victims
The £1m monument is made of 52 unique stainless steel columns, grouped in four clusters to reflect the locations - Tavistock Square, Edgware Road, King’s Cross and Aldgate - where four suicide bombers detonated their rucksack bombs, shattering the lives of so many.
As guests assembled for the ceremony, they wandered among the
columns, touching them and reading the names inscribed on a plaque placed at the site between the park’s Lover’s Walk and Park Lane.
Charlotte Harris - a close friend of one of the July 7th victims, Jennifer Nicholson, who was killed at Edgware Road - crouches in contemplation at the memorial
Enlarge
A young boy in smart shirt and tie holds a bouquet of flowers while two women hold each other close for comfort as they read the names on the plaque
Prince Charles shelters beneath an umbrella as he meets relatives of those killed in the 2005 bombing
Enlarge
A distraught relative grieves for her loved ones while others stand in silence to remember the dead
Prince Charles sits through the service, left, and greets Gordon Brown and his wife
The Prince told the crowd: 'I believe the date of the London bombings is etched vividly on all our minds, as a brutal intrusion into the lives of thousands of people.
'Tragically, as we know, some were not so fortunate as to walk away from what happened on that awful day, and it is them that we seek to honour with the memorial which has been erected here in Hyde Park in their memory.'
Charles went on to say that he and his wife wanted to express 'our deeply held grief and anguish at the appalling aberrations in the human consciousness which produced such cruel and mindless carnage'.
He also praised the 'resilience and fortitude of the British people' and said it was their indomitable spirit, together with the commitment and compassion of the emergency services, that got the country through July 7 and the days and weeks that followed.
Veteran broadcaster Sir Trevor MacDonald, who was hosting the ceremony, slowly and solemnly read the name of every person killed in the London bombings and at the end of the roll call told the families and survivors: 'We will remember them all.'
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, also with cabinet minister Tessa Jowell, arrive at the memorial service
In memory: The 7/7 memorial on Hyde Park is a permanent fixture, composed of four clusters of pillars and a plaque containing the names of the victims
A minute's silence was then held as the rain, which had held off for much of the ceremony, began to fall heavily. The crowd stood with their heads bowed as traffic from nearby Park Lane rumbled by.
The Prince and the Duchess were then invited forward to lay wreaths, with Charles placing a floral tribute made up of his Prince of Wales feathers on behalf of the nation in front of a plaque bearing the names of all 52 victims, while Camilla left her own tribute of flowers on behalf of the families.
As they did so, composer Christian Forshaw, accompanied by a string quartet and a percussionist, played his piece Remembrance specially commissioned for today's ceremony.
Forshaw played an alto saxophone as the drummer played a steady rhythm, adding to the sombre mood.
Bereaved relatives were then invited to read their own tributes to their loved ones and many placed single white or red roses in urns on either side of the memorial plaque while others left bouquets.
The rain stayed away for most of the ceremony, although it fell heavily near the end. The Duchess of Cornwall (second right) met families following the service
Saba Mozakka, 28, one of six relatives on the memorial's project board which helped create the monument, said: 'We think it is truly incredible and reflects the importance of the people commemorated.'
Ms Mozakka's mother, Behnaz Mozakka, 47, a biomedical officer, was killed on a Piccadilly line train while commuting to work.
She added: 'One of the fantastic things about the monument is that it reflects the individual and the collective and shows the connectivity of events.'
There was a relaxed atmosphere in Hyde Park before the unveiling ceremony began.
As the families waited for Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall to arrive, many spent time walking around the 52 stainless steel columns, running their hands over the surfaces of the metal structures and also reading the names inscribed on a plaque nearby.
Nearby, a 10-piece brass ensemble from the Guildhall School of Music entertained them with well-known tunes and, for a while, the sun shone before showers sent people scurrying under trees for shelter.
Former London mayor Ken Livingstone was among the 700 invited guests, who included survivors and victims' relatives.
He praised the striking design for the memorial, saying: 'I think it's just exactly right. Often, it's very difficult to do something like this and get it right, but I think everyone has done a great job.'
Speaking about the day when the bombs exploded, Mr Livingstone said: 'On the day, what drives you is the work that's got to be done, but, in the weeks and months afterwards, I met many families at various memorials and it was all incredibly painful.'
Tory leader Mr Cameron also had a positive response to the monument.
He said: 'I think it's very brilliantly put together. It seems also very fitting the way they've grouped the columns around the four areas where the bombs went off.
'Talking to some of the bereaved, they were all involved in this design and all like it and you can see people reacting to it positively.
'They're walking up and touching it - it's very positive and very good.'
The architects, designers and other team members responsible for the memorial will meet the royal couple who will also spend time with survivors of the attacks, and others involved in the rescue operation.
Mr Johnson said: 'This memorial echoes the steely determination shown by Londoners in the days following the bombings.
'We have done much to make London safer, but today reminds us that London's strength ultimately lies with its people.'
Horrified survivors onboard the Number 30 bus in Tavistock Square just seconds after it was ripped apart by an explosion which killed 13 passengers
Before the service, major new inquiry into the bombing was launched which will re-examine what evidence was available to security chiefs before the 7/7 bombings, and how the Government's emergency Cobra committee responded to the attack.
A previous investigation decided it was 'understandable and reasonable' that the terrorists had not been detected before the attack, but many relatives branded this a 'complete whitewash'.
The new inquiry will focus on Cobra, which was branded bureaucratic, overly political and cumbersome by Andy Hayman, the former head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorist operations.
The House of Commons Home Affairs Committee is expected to call senior intelligence officials to give evidence.
In its report on the Government's anti-terror strategy, published today, the committee warned the London Underground was still 'extremely vulnerable' to terrorist attack.
The four bombers: Above, Jermaine Lindsay and Hasib Hussain and, below, Tanweer Shehzad and Mohammad Sidique Khan
Committee chairman Keith Vaz MP said Cobra was a 'nonsensical system that drags people away from the serious job in hand to attend a crisis meeting'.
He added: 'The former Metropolitan Police Counter-Terrorism chief Andy Hayman recently raised some questions about the work of Cobra and we will be considering its effectiveness as the next stage of our scrutiny in this area.'
Survivors of the 7/7 attacks and relatives of victims have called for a full public inquiry, modelled on the commission that investigated the 9/11 attacks in the U.S.
In its report, the committee criticises Transport for London for inadequate communications on the day of the attack.
It says the 2012 Olympics is 'another critical area of vulnerability'.
The report concludes: 'The UK continues to face a sustained and extremely grave threat from terrorism.
'After a slow start, the Government has done a great deal to improve its counter-terrorism structures and now has an impressive approach to the issue.
'However, more work remains to be done. The threats have not lessened significantly, nor do we expect them to do so in the immediate future.'
THE 52 VICTIMS
King's Cross bomb
- James Adams, 32
- Samantha Badham, 35
- Lee Harris, 30
- Phil Beer, 22
- Anna Brandt, 41
- Ciaran Cassidy, 24
- Elizabeth Daplyn, 26
- Arthur Edlin Frederick, 60
- Karolina Gluck, 29
- Gamze Günoral, 24
- Ojara Ikeagwu, 55
- Emily Jenkins, 24
- Adrian Johnson, 37
- Helen Jones, 28
- Susan Levy, 53
- Shelley Mather, 26
- Michael Matsu****a, 37
- James Mayes, 28
- Behnaz Mozakka, 47
- Mihaela Otto, 46
- Atique Sharifi, 24
- Ihab Slimane, 24
- Christian 'Njoya' Small
- Monika Suchocka, 23,
- Mala Trivedi, 51
- Rachelle Chung For Yuen, 27
- Michael Stanley Brewster, 52
- Jonathan Downey, 34
- David Foulkes, 22
- Colin Morley, 52
- Jenny Nicholson, 24
- Laura Webb, 29
- Lee Baisden, 34
- Benedetta Ciaccia, 30
- Richard Ellery, 21
- Richard Gray, 41
- Anne Moffat, 48
- Fiona Stevenson, 29
- Carrie Taylor, 24
- Anthony Fatayi-Williams, 26
- Jamie Gordon, 30
- Giles Hart, 55
- Marie Hartley, 34
- Miriam Hyman, 32
- Shahara Akther Islam, 20
- Neetu Jain, 37
- Sam Ly, 28
- Shyanuja Parathasangary, 30
- Anat Rosenberg, 39
- Philip Russell, 28
- William Wise, 54
- Gladys Wundowa, 50
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