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23-07-2005 The Scotsman 'Bombers' unmasked as police shoot dead man on Tube By GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN CHIEF NEWS CORRESPONDENT POLICE hunting the four London bombers last night arrested a man, following a deadly game of cat-and-mouse on the streets of the capital in which armed officers shot dead a man in front of horrified passengers on an Underground train. With officers desperate to catch the bombers before they could strike again, CCTV images of the four key suspects were released and addresses across the capital were raided. In a major development, armed police stormed on to an estate in Stockwell at around 4:30pm yesterday and led a man from the scene. Last night he was being held at to the top-security Paddington Green police station. One report said he was one of the four suspected bombers. On a day of high drama, armed officers had earlier pursued a man they had been following into Stockwell Underground station at 10am and cornered him on a Northern Line train before firing shots at close range. The man died at the scene. Horrified eyewitnesses told how the drama was played out in front of them as they sat only yards away from the cornered suspect. The Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, said the shooting was "directly linked" to an ongoing and expanding anti-terrorist operation: "I need to make clear that any death is deeply regrettable, but as I understand the situation, the man was challenged and refused to obey police instructions." It appeared, however, that the man was not one of the four identified by police in the CCTV images. Police said that he had been "under police observation because he had emerged from a house that was itself under observation because it was linked to the investigation of [Thursday's] incidents". "He was then followed by surveillance officers to the station. His clothing and his behaviour at the station added to their suspicions." A Metropolitan Police spokesman later insisted that they were not operating a shoot-to-kill policy. "Police policy is to shoot to stop," he said. An investigation has begun into the killing. Ken Livingstone, the London mayor, defended the police action. Decisive action or even a shoot-to-kill policy may be necessary, he suggested. But the Muslim Council of Britain said Muslims were concerned there was a shoot-to-kill policy in operation. A spokesman said Muslims he had spoken to yesterday morning were "jumpy and nervous". No sooner had reports begun to filter out of what had happened in Stockwell than a mosque in Whitechapel was surrounded after a bomb scare. There were security alerts across the city, police cars and vans racing through the traffic, sirens blaring, lights flashing. Witnesses described how officers descended on an area surrounding Harrow Road, in west Kilburn, cordoning off streets and shouting at residents to stay indoors. A little after 1pm a robot device moved towards a house opposite the junction of nearby Portnall Road and Coomassie Road and an armoured van containing police wearing helmets and gas masks pulled up. Armed officers fired six rounds of CS gas into the windows and basement of the house from a building across the street. Patricia Osbourne watched police go in, taking a police dog with them. "I just saw people rushing in and lots of shouting and six shots," she said. Elsewhere in the country, a man arrested under anti-terror laws at Snow Hill rail station in Birmingham was later said not to be facing charges. Last night Sir Ian appealed for calm. "We need the understanding and co-operation of all the communities," he said. He urged people not to be swayed by the dozens of rumours about the bombings and those responsible. "There are rumours sweeping London and I appeal to people to listen to the facts as they emerge. This operation is targeted against criminals - it is not targeted against any community or section of a community." With London on a state of high alert and security scares across the capital, detectives fear the bombers may strike again, and yesterday they issued CCTV pictures of the four men they want to apprehend. Revealing the images, Scotland Yard assistant commissioner Andy Hayman warned members of the public not to approach the men under any circumstances. He said: "These are four men we urgently want to trace in connection with attempts to detonate four explosive devices on the transport system in central London yesterday. "It's crucial that detectives are able to question them about ... events at the Oval, Shepherd's Bush and Warren Street London Underground stations and a route 26 bus in Hackney Road. "We have two requests. Firstly, anyone who has information about where these men currently are, you should immediately call 999 and ask for urgent police response. The public are asked not to approach them. "It is time for the public to do what they are very good at, which is to support the investigation," he said. Mr Hayman said Thursday's bombings bore similarities to the bomb attacks in London on 7 July. He said the devices, contained in dark coloured bags or rucksacks, were left in three Tube trains and a bus. "There are other features that are emerging that are also of interest to detectives," he said, adding that officers were actively pursuing lines of inquiry in a fast-moving investigation. Initial forensic investigation indicates that a bomb partly detonated at each of the four sites. At this stage it is believed that the devices consisted of homemade explosives." There were also further suggestions that the latest attacks were linked to al-Qaeda. The Saudi ambassador, Prince Turki al-Faisal, said the attacks had "all the hallmarks" of the terrorist network. And a statement posted on an Islamic website in the name of a group linked to al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the failed attacks. The group, Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigade, also claimed responsibility for the 7 July bombings which killed 52 people and four suicide bombers. The group has regularly claimed responsibility for incidents in which it has played no part. In the United States, George Bush, the president, assured Londoners that they could count on his country's steadfast support. "The people of Great Britain must understand how strongly America stands with them during these trying times," Mr Bush said in Atlanta during a speech. His audience responded with a standing ovation. New York commuters seemed resigned to random searches as police stepped up security on the city's public transport in response to the new round of London attacks. Police in Scotland said they were stepping up patrols at airports and transport links but said there was no intelligence to suggest anywhere north of the Border was under threat. * Police last night released a man they arrested in Leeds last week in connection with the 7 July suicide bombs.
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................................................................................................................. Copyright ©2004 Gethin Chamberlain. All rights reserved. |
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