Posted on 07/12/2005 10:07:57 AM PDT by WmShirerAdmirer
Police made several arrests in the northern city of Leeds yesterday over the suspected al-Qaeda attacks that killed 52 people in London last week, Sky news television reported. BBC TV also said arrests had been made.
Earlier, police took up positions around a home in Leeds and were reported to have carried out a controlled explosion. Police also raided six houses in the city.
Neither London nor West Yorkshire police would confirm or deny the arrests or confirm reports of the controlled explosion.
Armed officers surrounded a home in the suburb of Burley, Leeds, where the explosion reportedly happened. The house was later found to be unoccupied.
BBC TV said about 500 people were evacuated from the area, a few kilometres from the suburb of Beeston, where anti-terrorist police raided five homes.
As the inquiries stepped up police said they believed a lone bomb-maker using sophisticated military explosives was responsible for building the London bombs.
Investigators, who developed the theory after finding similar explosive components at all four bomb sites, believe the materials were not home-made but possibly smuggled into Britain from the Balkans, according to The Times.
"The nature of the explosives appears to be military, which is very worrying," said Superintendent Christophe Chaboud, of the French anti-terrorist police, who is in London to help Scotland Yard. The bombs showed "a mastery of the method of creating explosions", said a Europe-based counter-terrorism official.
Forensic pathologists were paying special attention to the remains of two bodies found on the bombed bus in Tavistock Square, The Times said.
"They appear to have been holding the bomb or sitting on top of it - one of those might turn out to be the bomber," a police officer close to the investigation said.
A head found at the bus scene has also revived speculation that the attack was the work of a suicide bomber. Israeli experience shows suicide bombers are usually decapitated by the force of the blast. The lead came as the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, apologised to distraught relatives for the delays in identifying victims' bodies, but said authorities were intent on avoiding "distressing" false identifications that had been made after similar attacks overseas.
The mother of one victim, who flew to London from Nigeria, called on terrorists to end the "slaughter of innocent people".
"My heart is maimed," said Marie Fatayi-Williams, holding a photograph of her missing son.
"[The victims] are not warriors. Which cause has been served? Certainly not the cause of God, not the cause of Allah, because God Almighty only gives life and is full of mercy."
In a speech to Parliament praised by the Opposition as "calm, resolute and statesmanlike", Mr Blair promised to "pursue not just the perpetrators but the planners of this outrage".
He acknowledged that "by their very nature, people callous enough to kill completely innocent civilians in this way are very hard to stop".
He said Britain could crack down on several British-based Muslim clerics accused of provoking extremism. But he praised "the overwhelming majority of Muslims", who "stand four-square with every other community in Britain".
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
- Two more bombing victims were named yesterday. In statements released by police, the families of Jamie Gordon and Philip Russell said the two men had died.
- The death toll rose to 52. Forty-nine bodies have been formally identified.
- A terrorism expert said the bombers would be identified on closed-circuit TV recordings within two weeks.
As the inquiries stepped up police said they believed a lone bomb-maker using sophisticated military explosives was responsible for building the London bombs.
Investigators, who developed the theory after finding similar explosive components at all four bomb sites, believe the materials were not home-made but possibly smuggled into Britain from the Balkans, according to The Times.
"The nature of the explosives appears to be military, which is very worrying," said Superintendent Christophe Chaboud, of the French anti-terrorist police, who is in London to help Scotland Yard. The bombs showed "a mastery of the method of creating explosions", said a Europe-based counter-terrorism official.
Forensic pathologists were paying special attention to the remains of two bodies found on the bombed bus in Tavistock Square, The Times said.
"They appear to have been holding the bomb or sitting on top of it - one of those might turn out to be the bomber," a police officer close to the investigation said.
A head found at the bus scene has also revived speculation that the attack was the work of a suicide bomber. Israeli experience shows suicide bombers are usually decapitated by the force of the blast. The lead came as the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, apologised to distraught relatives for the delays in identifying victims' bodies, but said authorities were intent on avoiding "distressing" false identifications that had been made after similar attacks overseas.
The mother of one victim, who flew to London from Nigeria, called on terrorists to end the "slaughter of innocent people".
"My heart is maimed," said Marie Fatayi-Williams, holding a photograph of her missing son.
"[The victims] are not warriors. Which cause has been served? Certainly not the cause of God, not the cause of Allah, because God Almighty only gives life and is full of mercy."
In a speech to Parliament praised by the Opposition as "calm, resolute and statesmanlike", Mr Blair promised to "pursue not just the perpetrators but the planners of this outrage".
He acknowledged that "by their very nature, people callous enough to kill completely innocent civilians in this way are very hard to stop".
He said Britain could crack down on several British-based Muslim clerics accused of provoking extremism. But he praised "the overwhelming majority of Muslims", who "stand four-square with every other community in Britain".
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
- Two more bombing victims were named yesterday. In statements released by police, the families of Jamie Gordon and Philip Russell said the two men had died.
- The death toll rose to 52. Forty-nine bodies have been formally identified.
- A terrorism expert said the bombers would be identified on closed-circuit TV recordings within two weeks.
As the inquiries stepped up police said they believed a lone bomb-maker using sophisticated military explosives was responsible for building the London bombs.
Investigators, who developed the theory after finding similar explosive components at all four bomb sites, believe the materials were not home-made but possibly smuggled into Britain from the Balkans, according to The Times.
"The nature of the explosives appears to be military, which is very worrying," said Superintendent Christophe Chaboud, of the French anti-terrorist police, who is in London to help Scotland Yard. The bombs showed "a mastery of the method of creating explosions", said a Europe-based counter-terrorism official.
Forensic pathologists were paying special attention to the remains of two bodies found on the bombed bus in Tavistock Square, The Times said.
"They appear to have been holding the bomb or sitting on top of it - one of those might turn out to be the bomber," a police officer close to the investigation said.
A head found at the bus scene has also revived speculation that the attack was the work of a suicide bomber. Israeli experience shows suicide bombers are usually decapitated by the force of the blast. The lead came as the Prime Minister, Tony Blair, apologised to distraught relatives for the delays in identifying victims' bodies, but said authorities were intent on avoiding "distressing" false identifications that had been made after similar attacks overseas.
The mother of one victim, who flew to London from Nigeria, called on terrorists to end the "slaughter of innocent people".
"My heart is maimed," said Marie Fatayi-Williams, holding a photograph of her missing son.
"[The victims] are not warriors. Which cause has been served? Certainly not the cause of God, not the cause of Allah, because God Almighty only gives life and is full of mercy."
In a speech to Parliament praised by the Opposition as "calm, resolute and statesmanlike", Mr Blair promised to "pursue not just the perpetrators but the planners of this outrage".
He acknowledged that "by their very nature, people callous enough to kill completely innocent civilians in this way are very hard to stop".
He said Britain could crack down on several British-based Muslim clerics accused of provoking extremism. But he praised "the overwhelming majority of Muslims", who "stand four-square with every other community in Britain".
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
- Two more bombing victims were named yesterday. In statements released by police, the families of Jamie Gordon and Philip Russell said the two men had died.
- The death toll rose to 52. Forty-nine bodies have been formally identified.
- A terrorism expert said the bombers would be identified on closed-circuit TV recordings within two weeks.
Not punishment enough. Throw their bodies into a vat of pig fat.
Christ died for us. In the case of Allah, his followers have to die for him.
Until the mainstream of Muslim leadership condemn and classify vociferously the terrorists as blasphemers we are in for a long ordeal. Something tells me that courage is not a virtue of the faith.
Hehehehehe!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.