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| Britain |
| London faces lockdown to thwart third terror strike |
| 2005-08-01 |
| Edited for new information. THOUSANDS of police marksmen will be on Londonâs streets and rooftops again today after warnings that another team of suicide bombers is plotting a third attack on the capital. The new group is believed to be made up of British Muslims who were understood to be close to staging an attack on the Underground network last week. According to security sources the men are thought to be of Pakistani origin but born and brought up in [England]. They have links with the Leeds-based terrorist cell that staged the July 7 attacks. Even with the transport system so heavily guarded, police and intelligence sources believe that the bombers are intent on once more attacking Londonâs bus and Underground network. US security sources said yesterday that this third group of would-be bombers met at Finsbury Park mosque in North London, where some of the July 7 terrorists are also known to have stayed. There are reports that this team originally planned to strike last Thursday, which is why more than 6,000 police, half of them armed, were present at Underground stations. Scotland Yard said at the time that this exercise, the biggest since the Second World War, was to test their resources and reassure a nervous public. As commuters return to work today police chiefs say that the arrest of five suspected bombers in house raids in Birmingham, London and Rome has not ended this threat. There is concern among ministers and police at how long officers can continue such an intensive operation to âlock downâ London while a threat remains. Although reinforcements have been brought in and leave has been cancelled, resources are stretched to keep up the guard on the capital, which is costing £500,000 a day. Sir Ian Blair, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, admitted that his officers were âvery, very tiredâ. Hopefully the continuing string of arrests will take care of this threat quickly, and the police can take a well-earned break. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #4 £500k a day is just the beginning of the costs incurred. They should think about how much more costly it would be if another 50 people are murdered by Islamofascists and hundreds maimed. The cost of homeland security is a lot higher than £180m a year and we had better b eready to bear it... because we are at war. The best estimate I have seen for the cost of 9/11 to the US economy is around $500 billion. And that doesn't include the cost of liberating Afghanistan + Iraq. |
| Posted by: Kalle (kafir forever) 2005-08-01 23:54 |
| #3 Both spellings are correct, twobyfour, depending on whether your dictionary is Brit or Yank. But if you choose Brit, you need a font that squishes the ae together. But you'll have to ask one of our computer types about that... I just pour out the tea. I gave up on programming stuff back in the days of Fortran1 and APL. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-08-01 23:13 |
| #2 medieval (I'll write it 100 times on a piece of paper to preserve Fred's bamdwidth) |
| Posted by: twobyfour 2005-08-01 21:16 |
| #1 would-be bombers met at Finsbury Park mosque in North London, where some of the July 7 terrorists are also known to have stayed. What Would Vlad Do? Probably something appropriately mediaeval. I would lock up anyone showing up there... and consequently, lose the key. ;-) |
| Posted by: twobyfour 2005-08-01 21:14 |