Bombings In London - Updated
In case you have not already heard, there have been a series of bombings in London. As of now, there have been four seperate bombings, three on London Underground subway trains and one on a double-decker bus. Casualties are heavy; at least 40 killed and 300 injured reported so far, and I expect that to rise.
A previously unheard-of group, The Secret Organization of Al-Qaeda in Europe, is claiming responsibility. Update 3:45 PM MDT: Authorities are not yet officially naming any group or country as responsible.
I recommend following the BBC or Washington Post on this; they seem to be on top of it so far.
Update 11:15 AM MDT:
Casualty figures are staying roughly the same, with between 30 and 45 killed and 300 injured. These numbers are still changing.
The pattern of attack is emerging as well: the attacks were not quite simultaneous - there was a 30-minute break between the last subway bombing and the bus bombing.
Attack Timeline (Times GMT) From the BBC:Ongoing discussion and news at The Corner and The Counterterrorism Blog.
0851 Seven people die in a blast on a train 100 yards from Liverpool Street station
0856 21 people die in a blast on a train between Russell Square and King's Cross stations
0917 Five people die in blast on a train at Edgware Road station
0947 An unknown number die in a blast on a number 30 bus at Tavistock Place
Update 3:45 PM MDT:
Casualty figures are at approximately 40 dead and 700 injured.
ABC News is reporting that British police have recovered two unexploded bombs and pieces of the arming mechanisms of the bombs from all four bombing sites.
My Analysis - a few random thoughts:
No warning - no intelligence "chatter" beforehand. That's significant - I'm just not sure how yet.
The half-hour gap between the last subway attack and the bus bombing - again, that's significant. Was that delay intentional, or merely accidental (like the lateness of the fourth September 11th plane)?
Why London? Either US counter-terror efforts have proven successful in making the US hard to operate in, the terrorists were home-town whackos, or the terrorists are trying to split the US-UK alliance. My guess, a combination of all three or the last two. It would be nice to know which.
Some sort of response/reprisal is necessary. Find those responsible, and destroy them without mercy. They target civilians. They operate outside the rules of war - and therefore are ineligible for any rights under those rules. But will Britain have the stomach, and will we back them? (Yes, and yes - I hope.)
posted by Tyler @ 8:21 AM
6 comments
6 Comments:
Sometimes you wonder about things like this. Is it possible that Jacque Chirac was a little pissed that London got the Olympics and not Paris? Is it possible that he floated some money to this group if they would execute this attack?
Chirac has always seemed a little less than honorable. And, I'm sure there is more than one Frenchman smiling, and thumbing his nose at the English this morning.
You're not the first to suggest it, but no, I don't think so. Besides, that would consitute an overt act of war.
No, this is most likely some Islamist group. It breaks the profile of the IRA, which usually intends its bombings to disrupt, rather than kill.
And the multiple simultaneous attacks fits the profile of Al-Qaeda, although an Al-Qaeda wannabe group could imitate that.
I know it's not likely that Chirac had anything to do with it...I just like a good conspiracy theory.
However, the attitude of the French is truly sickening. I'm sure there are many who are happy that this happened.
Okay, enough of the French stuff. Really.
These were Islamist whackos - Great Britain has them in droves; France and Germany have even bigger communities of them. They nestle in the immigrant communities, which tend to be very closemouthed anyway. Perfect hiding places.
Who they are, and who they were affiliated with, is being determined even as we speak by Britain's police and intelligence services. ABC News is reporting that two unexploded bombs have been dicovered, and that pieces of the exploded bombs and their arming mechanisms have been recovered from all four bombing sites.
And those are exactly what the police need to track down these b*****ds.
I don't know. Isn't it odd that first Spain was bombed, then England? They may be crankin' more than pastry out of Paris.
I was talking with my boss yesterday (he is from an Asian country) and he was telling me how this kind of terror wasn't prevalent in his country.
Why? Deterrent.
He said that when they find out who the culprits are, they summarily execute all relatives...parents, children, brothers, cousins, etc. to the third generation. What message does this send to suicide bombers and terrorists? You kill one of us, and we will kill your whole dastardly clan and rid the earth of your filthy blood.
If we were to apply the same logic to Iraq or other terrorist hotspots we would peace quickly. If we find that you, or your village, has been harboring terrorists then you're all going in the slammer. If your relatives dont' report you, they all go in the slammer. Let's make it less an honor to harbor these villains!
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