London bombs kill at least 33

'Barbaric' terror attack says PM Tony Blair
Thursday, July 7, 2005 Posted: 1448 GMT (2248 HKT)

LONDON, England (CNN) -- At least 33 are dead and scores wounded after a series of four "callous" and coordinated bombings in London's transport system, Scotland Yard said.

U.S. law enforcement sources say the British government has told them the death toll is at least 40.

Witnesses described the horror of seeing victims dying and with serious injuries. There were scenes of panic as power failed on crowded underground trains, and tunnels filled with smoke.

"We were all trapped like sardines waiting to die," said Angelo Power. "I honestly thought I was going to die, as did everyone else."

British Prime Minister Tony Blair said it was a "barbaric" terrorist attack as he flew back to London from the G8 summit in Scotland, which he said would go on in defiance of the bombers.
A group, the "Secret Organization group of al Qaeda Organization in Europe," claimed responsibility in a Web site posting. The authenticity of the claim could not immediately be verified.

CNN's Charles Hodson, reporting from the scene of one of the bombings, said London had ground to a halt as the subway and bus systems had been shut down by the attacks.

Police immediately began a hunt for the bombers -- thought to have operated similar to the Madrid bomb attackers of March 2004 who left explosives on trains rather than mounted suicide attacks.

The death toll was expected to rise and London hospitals reported many people in critical and serious condition.

Three of the blasts took place in the city's subway system and one more hit a double-decker bus, all at the height of rush hour.

International SOS, an international medical emergency service, reported that the police had found explosive traces in at least one of four confirmed blast locations.

Scotland Yard's Deputy Assistant Commissioner Brian Paddick told a news conference that there had been 33 deaths in the three train incidents plus an unknown number of fatalities in the bus attack.

There had been no warnings given and the police had received no claim of responsibility for the attacks, he said.

Hospital officials have reported at least 160 wounded. London transit officials shut down the entire Underground and stopped buses in the central city district.

Blair, in Scotland where he is hosting the G8 summit, told reporters he would leave the summit for a "face to face" report in London and then return later in the evening.

"It's reasonably clear there have been a series of terrorist attacks in London," Blair said. "There are obviously casualties, both people that have died and people that are seriously injured.

Blair said it was "also reasonably clear" that the attacks were timed to coincide with the opening of the summit.

"It's particularly barbaric that this has happened on a day when people are meeting to try to help the problems of proverty in Africa and the long-term problems with the environment," he said.

Just before leaving for London, Blair made a second statement, surrounded by the other leaders present at the conference.

"All of our countries have suffered from the impact of terrorism," he said. "Those responsible have no respect for human life. We are united in our resolve to confront and defeat this terrorism that is not an attack on one nation, but all nations and on civilized people everywhere."

U.S. President George W. Bush was among the somber leaders who stood behind Blair as he spoke.

"We will not yield to these people, will not yield to the terrorists," he said in a short statement after Blair departed. "We will find them, we will bring them to justice, and at the same time we will spread an ideology of hope and compassion that will overwhelm their ideology of hate."

London Mayor Ken Livingstone said the blasts were "mass murder" carried out by terrorists bent on "indiscriminate ... slaughter >>>continued

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/07/07/london.tube/index.html