Silent tribute to London dead

LONDON has fallen silent in memory of the victims of last week's bombings as police released more shocking details about the terrorists responsible.

London mourns

The streets of London fell silent yesterday in memory of the victims of last week's bombings, with Europeans joining Londoners in tribute to the dead. With the identities of the bombers falling into place, the investigation was focusing on who might have been the actual masterminds of the most deadly attack on British soil since World War II.

"That is the absolute focus of the current investigation," Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Ian Blair said, as the number of confirmed dead rose to 53, with some 700 injured.

Eight of the injured are in critical condition, Blair revealed.

Londoners poured out of buildings into the hushed city streets for two minutes at noon (9pm AEST). Bus drivers turned off their engines, and taxis drew to a halt to pay their respects.

Flags flew at half staff as Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Tony Blair joined in the tribute, the silence broken only by Big Ben tolling the 12 strokes of midday.

"It's important to show solidarity at a time like this," Michael Newport, an executive at Westminster City Council, said after paying his respects at Trafalgar Square.

Several thousand people returned to the sun-soaked square - decked out with a large "London United" banner - later in the day for an evening vigil in memory of the victims.

The solemn tributes came as police stepped up their hunt for the masterminds of the attacks, in which bombs tore through three Underground subway trains and a red double-decker bus during the July 7 morning rush hour.

The Times said police had already identified the man thought to be the mastermind.

It said the British-born man in his 30s, also of Pakistani origin, arrived at a British port last month and left the country again on July 6, the day before the attacks.

It said detectives were also urgently trying to find an Egyptian-born chemistry lecturer, M. Asdi el-Nashar, 33, who taught until recently at Leeds University.

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