The suspected terrorist shot dead at Stockwell tube station last week was innocent Brazilian electrician Jean Charles de Menezes. He was shot seven times in the head and once in the shoulder by armed plain clothed policemen. Seven times in the head seems like overkill to me and the whole event belongs in a Hollywood action flick. Sadly, it is rooted in reality and a man has lost his life because of mistake and terrible judgement.
The debate is raging now that an innocent man has died and the police have over-reacted in response to London's terrorist threats. It is undeniable that the police have a very difficult job to do in this current climate which may involve split second decisions when dealing with potential suicide bombers and terrorist situations. In this case they decided that this man posed sufficient threat after chasing him into a tube station and onto a train carriage, that they shot him in the head several times from close range in the mistaken belief that he had a bomb under his jacket, to safeguard the lives of members of the public.
Now, I can accept that in the critical moment the police had to make their decision and decided to take out the threat (although I'm not sure that it necessitated seven headshots), and that the armed police in the UK are acting on instinct under difficult circumstances. However, this innocent man died needlessly as the police had been trailing him from his house and so could have apprehended him in a less dangerous environment than the train carriage, given their belief that he was a suicide bomber. They even let him get on a bus, which begs the question as to the logic in the thinking that allowed a suspected suicide bomber to board a bus, yet when he got on a tube train they shot him in the head.
Those justifying the police action have commented that they were following procedure and acted to avert a perceived bomb strike, stating that had the police failed to stop him and he actually was a terrorist bomber, the results would have been catastrophic. The counter-argument to this is had the police acted with foresight and a policy of safely apprehending the suspect, events would not have escalated as they did.
An independent inquiry into the incident is underway and if reports are correct, the police acted as they believed they had to in the circumstances when shooting this man at Stockwell tube station. However, had they acted more appropriately when trailing him the ensuing events would not have necessitated their decision to shoot him dead. The full facts are yet to transpire and hindsight makes for easy answers to difficult questions. What is beyond doubt is that the British police face a hard task in terms of terrorist security and have made an unbelievable mistake in killing a totally innocent man; their reputation will suffer for the inept handling of this incident.
26.7.05
22.7.05
Slipping The Net
So the events yesterday were eerily similar to the events of two weeks ago with the devices reported to be similar to the ones used then in terms of weight and size. Except this time only the detonator charges went off failing to set off the main explosives. Another failure was related to the suspects escaping, which in this moment of heightened security and increased public police presence is poor.
Suspect bombers fled tube stations chased by commuters yet still they managed to escape. Questions have to be asked about where the police were at the time (given the focus of attacks on the transport network, I'd have thought tube stations might be a priority). Sure, it's unreasonable to expect blanket police coverage as of course they can't be everywhere - but I've noticed one or two officers at most of the central stations recently so where were the ones at Warren St, if not at Oval and Shepherd's Bush which are a bit further out?
Apparently, armed police reacted quickly after reports that a man ran into University College Hospital near to Warren St tube station, but it seems like a case of locking the gate after the horse had bolted and there are no updates yet as to whether that man was finally caught. If you ask me, the officers who should have been outside that station were the ones who should have stopped that suspect, which would have saved the situation of armed police galloping into a hospital. Latest reports this morning are that a suspected bomber has been shot by police at Stockwell tube station but at the moment no further details are available.
I caught the overland train into Liverpool St this morning as I'm meeting friends for drinks tonight in Soho, so left my bike at home - hopefully there won't be too much disruption to the transport network.
Suspect bombers fled tube stations chased by commuters yet still they managed to escape. Questions have to be asked about where the police were at the time (given the focus of attacks on the transport network, I'd have thought tube stations might be a priority). Sure, it's unreasonable to expect blanket police coverage as of course they can't be everywhere - but I've noticed one or two officers at most of the central stations recently so where were the ones at Warren St, if not at Oval and Shepherd's Bush which are a bit further out?
Apparently, armed police reacted quickly after reports that a man ran into University College Hospital near to Warren St tube station, but it seems like a case of locking the gate after the horse had bolted and there are no updates yet as to whether that man was finally caught. If you ask me, the officers who should have been outside that station were the ones who should have stopped that suspect, which would have saved the situation of armed police galloping into a hospital. Latest reports this morning are that a suspected bomber has been shot by police at Stockwell tube station but at the moment no further details are available.
I caught the overland train into Liverpool St this morning as I'm meeting friends for drinks tonight in Soho, so left my bike at home - hopefully there won't be too much disruption to the transport network.
21.7.05
Strike Two
Exactly two weeks on to the day of the terrorist bombings in London, three incidents have occurred at Warren St, Shepherd's Bush and Oval tube stations as well as an incident involving a bus in Bethnal Green, East London. Most people in my office are out at lunch at the moment but it has been reported that these explosions involving men with rucksacks, were bomb detonators going off as some of the suspects were witnessed running away and minimal damage and injuries have occurred.
The police and services have gone to a raised state of emergency and these suspected terrorist attacks have caused the tube system to be suspended until further notice causing more transport headaches for commuters later this evening. I decided to ride in this morning so should be ok getting home give or take a couple of road diversions.
With news breaking by the minute it is hard to tell exactly what has happened, but with the underground down again it seems this was another attempt to strike London which hasn't quite gone to plan, as luckily none of the bombs seem to have been properly detonated. Well, the full picture will only appear after things have calmed down so I'm off to lunch for now.
The police and services have gone to a raised state of emergency and these suspected terrorist attacks have caused the tube system to be suspended until further notice causing more transport headaches for commuters later this evening. I decided to ride in this morning so should be ok getting home give or take a couple of road diversions.
With news breaking by the minute it is hard to tell exactly what has happened, but with the underground down again it seems this was another attempt to strike London which hasn't quite gone to plan, as luckily none of the bombs seem to have been properly detonated. Well, the full picture will only appear after things have calmed down so I'm off to lunch for now.
11.7.05
Over And Out
Saturday saw the last wedding of this year (unless there are some late announcements!) for me - that of uni friends N & V. As per the usual wedding between university friends it was nice to catch up with everybody, indulge in a few drinks and relive our student union days on the dancefloor. With the transport difficulties in London, it took me a while getting to Liverpool Street station from where I had to catch a train to Chelmsford, as the wedding venue was Leez Priory nearby.
A memorable day, we were in the beautiful surrounds of antique Tudor buildings set amongst expansive gardens complete with ponds and towers to explore. Following the wedding ceremony, which was carried out up in a romantic tower, guests were free to wander the grounds and buildings in the afternoon sun and as the evening's entertainment beckoned, people were attracted to the vicinity of the bar.
There were plenty of ducks wandering about due to the nearby ponds and they tended to follow people to the main buildings in search for food. It was almost like a scene out of Hitchcock's 'The Birds' when guests opened the main timber door to be greeted by a multitude of ducks waiting expectantly.
A memorable day, we were in the beautiful surrounds of antique Tudor buildings set amongst expansive gardens complete with ponds and towers to explore. Following the wedding ceremony, which was carried out up in a romantic tower, guests were free to wander the grounds and buildings in the afternoon sun and as the evening's entertainment beckoned, people were attracted to the vicinity of the bar.
There were plenty of ducks wandering about due to the nearby ponds and they tended to follow people to the main buildings in search for food. It was almost like a scene out of Hitchcock's 'The Birds' when guests opened the main timber door to be greeted by a multitude of ducks waiting expectantly.
8.7.05
London Bombings Aftermath
Met my sister at London Bridge yesterday afternoon to try and get home after all the transport disruption due to the bombings, joining the hordes of people walking up to Liverpool Street station which was reported as apparently open for overland trains only. Once there, we found crowds outside as the police and transport officials had closed the entrances explaining that they were trying to sort out limited train services. As Zone 1 buses (central) were not running we decided to walk north towards Hackney until we could catch a bus - which we eventually did, getting home in two hours as opposed to a usual commute of 40 minutes.
There are officially 37 dead from the four bombs which went off yesterday: 21 from the King's Cross tube; 7 from the Edgeware Rd tube; 7 from the Aldgate tube; 2 from the bus at Tavistock Square nr Russell Square. It's scary to think how much randomness plays into who lives or dies in these situations as my sister was on the train in front of the King's Cross tube which was bombed. She told me her train was rammed with people (she only just squeezed on), which explains the high number of fatalities on the train behind as it would have been similar. The death toll will probably rise due to the high number of casualties estimated at over 700.
My colleagues were saying that train and tube services were running a limited service this morning (with the affected tube lines closed) and that there were fewer people than normal. I decided it would be easier to ride my motorbike into work today than take the variety of bus routes and tube connections I would have had to use because of the closure of the Piccadilly line and King's Cross station. Road traffic seemed to be quite busy with plenty of buses running. On the whole, most of the transport system is up and running and people are trying to get on as normally as possible after yesterday's trauma.
BBC UPDATE
There are officially 37 dead from the four bombs which went off yesterday: 21 from the King's Cross tube; 7 from the Edgeware Rd tube; 7 from the Aldgate tube; 2 from the bus at Tavistock Square nr Russell Square. It's scary to think how much randomness plays into who lives or dies in these situations as my sister was on the train in front of the King's Cross tube which was bombed. She told me her train was rammed with people (she only just squeezed on), which explains the high number of fatalities on the train behind as it would have been similar. The death toll will probably rise due to the high number of casualties estimated at over 700.
My colleagues were saying that train and tube services were running a limited service this morning (with the affected tube lines closed) and that there were fewer people than normal. I decided it would be easier to ride my motorbike into work today than take the variety of bus routes and tube connections I would have had to use because of the closure of the Piccadilly line and King's Cross station. Road traffic seemed to be quite busy with plenty of buses running. On the whole, most of the transport system is up and running and people are trying to get on as normally as possible after yesterday's trauma.
BBC UPDATE
7.7.05
The Inevitable Strike
Luckily for me I got to work early this morning and so missed the chaos that followed all the so called 'power surges' on various tube lines including my usual Piccadilly line. Twenty minutes later and I could have been caught up in one of the tube trains involved in the explosion at King's Cross station which is on my daily commute.
Cue hysteria and speculation which mounted as news of other explosions came filtering through, initially described as electrical 'power surges', the news that a bus had exploded near Russell Square made up my mind that the explosions were a touch more sinister than electrical disruption. So the inevitable terrorist attack on London has happened. Well, at the moment the complete underground network is incapacitated and there are no buses running in central London - according to news reports, a terrorist outfit affiliated to Al-Qaeda is claiming responsibilty.
It's too early for any accurate official figures for the dead and injured, but given the timing of the attacks during the rush hour they could be quite high. The problem for many now (including myself) is being stranded in central London as the underground network has been shutdown and there are no buses operating around the centre of the city.
What is more frightening to me, is not that the attacks occurred (they were inevitable), but that the police and services which are on an anti-terror state of alert seem to have been caught totally unawares. Perhaps with focus on the G8 summit in Gleneagles and hence supposed heightened security, nobody thought an attack would come now. However, the police and emergency services are in full effect and the important thing now is not criticism, but support to help get the city of London fully functioning again.
BBC REPORT
Cue hysteria and speculation which mounted as news of other explosions came filtering through, initially described as electrical 'power surges', the news that a bus had exploded near Russell Square made up my mind that the explosions were a touch more sinister than electrical disruption. So the inevitable terrorist attack on London has happened. Well, at the moment the complete underground network is incapacitated and there are no buses running in central London - according to news reports, a terrorist outfit affiliated to Al-Qaeda is claiming responsibilty.
It's too early for any accurate official figures for the dead and injured, but given the timing of the attacks during the rush hour they could be quite high. The problem for many now (including myself) is being stranded in central London as the underground network has been shutdown and there are no buses operating around the centre of the city.
What is more frightening to me, is not that the attacks occurred (they were inevitable), but that the police and services which are on an anti-terror state of alert seem to have been caught totally unawares. Perhaps with focus on the G8 summit in Gleneagles and hence supposed heightened security, nobody thought an attack would come now. However, the police and emergency services are in full effect and the important thing now is not criticism, but support to help get the city of London fully functioning again.
BBC REPORT
5.7.05
A Spanish Affair
Arrived back yesterday from Spain where I've spent a long weekend celebrating the wedding of a couple of friends out there. Quite a raucous occasion in traditional full-on fiesta spirit, there was no fretting about whether the sun would come out as per your average english wedding because it was damn hot day and night!
It was a nice and easy registerial ceremony but the fun started at the restaurant where after a fine lunch/dinner the music was turned up in the wedding suite and the bottles of whisky and rum were broken out. Spanish measures are generous compared to the usual amounts to be found in the UK, and so the party was pretty well fuelled. We all moved on from there to sit out on the terrace of a nearby bar later where the drinking continued in more relaxed surroundings with only the younger generations involved this time (the elders having retired after the restaurant).
Eventually, we all made a move for the beach, reassembling there armed with various bottles of alcohol, ice-boxes, snacks and other essentials for a beach party. We carried on till dawn, only interrupted once by the local police who came to check we weren't up to anything too naughty and left us peaceably reminding us to clean up after ourselves - in all, a first for me as I've never finished off a wedding with drunken nightswimming before!
It was a nice and easy registerial ceremony but the fun started at the restaurant where after a fine lunch/dinner the music was turned up in the wedding suite and the bottles of whisky and rum were broken out. Spanish measures are generous compared to the usual amounts to be found in the UK, and so the party was pretty well fuelled. We all moved on from there to sit out on the terrace of a nearby bar later where the drinking continued in more relaxed surroundings with only the younger generations involved this time (the elders having retired after the restaurant).
Eventually, we all made a move for the beach, reassembling there armed with various bottles of alcohol, ice-boxes, snacks and other essentials for a beach party. We carried on till dawn, only interrupted once by the local police who came to check we weren't up to anything too naughty and left us peaceably reminding us to clean up after ourselves - in all, a first for me as I've never finished off a wedding with drunken nightswimming before!
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