Opinions?"The fact that suicide bombers might be homegrown is particularly frightening and shocking," said defence analyst Peter Caddick-Adams. "It's easier to think of terrorists as people who come from another country, perpetrate their acts and then disappear."
Mike.
--------------------------------------------
London bomb plot was bred in UK
By DOUG SAUNDERS AND ELIZABETH RENZETTI
July 12, 2005 - From Wednesday's Globe and Mail
Thursday's terrorist attacks in London were carried out by four young suicide bombers, likely all British citizens, who had worked out of a hidden bomb factory in a Pakistani neighbourhood in northern England, police discovered yesterday.
The revelations, made after a stunning series of raids, have alarmed North American and European security officials. This marks the first time that a Middle East-style suicide bombing has been carried out in the West in history, and the realization that the bombers may have been born and raised in Britain raises the possibility of a new sort of terrorism.
The young men, aged between 18 and 30, had never previously been associated with Islamist terrorism or radical politics, police said, and were apparently unknown to intelligence officials despite years of investigations. Their friends and neighbours in Leeds described them as seemingly innocuous figures. In at least two cases, they appeared to live respectable, middle-class lives, playing sports and blending happily into their communities.
Drawing on identification cards found at the bomb sites, security-camera footage and reports of missing youths coming from Yorkshire, police and heavily armed soldiers yesterday conducted a series of raids on houses in Leeds and other parts of Yorkshire, and the evacuation of the neighbourhood around a bomb-making safe house in Leeds.
Advertisements
They also discovered an explosives-packed car outside a train station in suburban London, and arrested one man in Leeds on terrorism charges.
This allowed police to draw a detailed picture of the origins and trajectories of the four bombers.
On Monday night, after combing through thousands of hours of closed-circuit TV footage, police found the smoking-gun image: Footage of four young men arriving at King's Cross station, smiling and looking relaxed, wearing heavy backpacks and heading off in different directions.
Three of the young men are Shahzad Tanweer, 22, whose ID cards were found at the Aldgate Station bomb site; Hasib Hussain, 18, whose ID cards were found on the No..30 bus that exploded near Russell Square and whose parents had reported him missing on July 7; and a man whose name has been reported as Mohammed Sadique Khan, aged 30, whose remains were found in the Edgware Road site.
The fourth bomber's name is not yet known, but police believe that the wreckage of the King's Cross train on the Piccadilly Line, which is still being searched, may yield his ID documents. But they cautioned that it is not absolutely certain he was killed.
Police also raided the home of Jacksey Fiaz, believed to be in his late 30s, who is thought to be an influential figure over the young men.
It is believed the four men, three of them known to be British-born citizens of Pakistani descent, met at Luton, where they travelled to King's Cross station together, possibly in a rental car.
"The fact that suicide bombers might be homegrown is particularly frightening and shocking," said defence analyst Peter Caddick-Adams. "It's easier to think of terrorists as people who come from another country, perpetrate their acts and then disappear."
Another security analyst said the co-ordination and complexity of the attacks suggest the men were acting with outside help, and not "operating from their bedrooms."
The mechanics of suicide bombing are "much more complex" than an attack where the bomb is detonated from a distance, said analyst Christopher Ruane. The prospective suicide bomber needs to be recruited, trained and supported by a community of like-minded people.
In Leeds last night, some 600 people who had been removed from their homes were still waiting for the police to allow them to return. Officials said they are unlikely to be allowed back into their houses until suppertime tonight, because one of the houses may contain large amounts of explosives, some of them potentially booby-trapped. Earlier in the day, police had sent a robot into one of the houses, triggering a controlled explosion. The man arrested in Leeds is said to be a relative of one of the suspects, and was being transferred to London for questioning.
Police had also impounded the car at the Luton rail station in suburban London, from which they removed a "large amount" of explosive. The Luton station, a busy transportation hub, was closed last night, causing disruption for commuters.
The suspects, who have already been dubbed the "boy bombers" by Britain's tabloids, were so-called "cleanskins," seemingly average young men without evident ties to extremist groups.
Yesterday, police in London and Leeds called for calm and said any acts of retaliation against Muslims would be dealt with immediately.
"At times like these, communities bind together," said deputy commissioner Andy Hayman of London's Metropolitan Police. "I want to conclude by making it absolutely clear that no one should be in any doubt the work last Thursday is that of extremists and criminals. So, that being the case, no one should smear or stigmatize any community with these acts."
Iqbal SacranieÖ of the Muslim Council greeted the news with "anguish and shock. Nothing in Islam can ever justify the evil actions of the bombers."
Massoud ShadjarehÖ of the Islamic Human Rights Commission said there had been 50 reports of assaults against British Muslims or mosques. There was an arson attack on a mosque in Birkenhead, Merseyside, over the weekend, as well as two separate attacks in Bristol and one in east London. There were no injuries reported.
"No Muslim should feel guilty about what these monsters did," said Sadiq Khan, an MP from South London
The trouble is that people are starting to turn against Muslim communities. But not all the Muslim communities are terrorist! There is a programme on our TV called "The Wright Stuff" They discuss current affairs and other issues. This subject was on this mornings programme and a muslim woman phoned in, she explained that the majority of Muslims in her community are totally against the bombings and explained that they're not all like that. And that there are only a few radicals. I think her fear was that all muslims are going to be treated like terrorist, and I feel this must not happen. Whichever country you live in there will always be bad apples.
) and send him along to Iraq. Sounds like he's rearin' for a scrap. 
