Blair calls for return to normality after explosions

THE FOLLOWING is the text of Tony Blair’s statement about yesterday’s incidents made at his 10 Downing Street press conference:

“I know you will want me to say a few words, obviously, about what’s happened over the last few hours.

“I hope you will forgive me if I say to you it’s best, for operational details, to go to the police and the emergency services and others who can give you the information.

“I obviously heard about this, as you probably did, when I was in the middle of the lunch meeting with the prime minister (of Australia, John Howard). I’ve then taken the Cobra meeting at 2.30.

“I’ve just spoken to the Metropolitan Police Commissioner again now. He, I think, has issued a statement which I think will be published shortly, and his hope is that things now can get back to normal again as quickly as possible.

“We can’t minimise incidents such as this because they obviously have been serious in four different places, as we know.

“I think all I would like to say is this: We know why these things are done. They are done to scare people and to frighten them, to make them anxious and worried.

“Fortunately in this instance there appear to have been no casualties.

“The police have done their very best, and the security services too, in the situation, and I think we have just got to react calmly and continue with our business as much as possible as normal.

“Following the meeting with the prime minister now and the press conference, I will go back to the schedule of meetings that I had, since the Metropolitan Police commissioner has indicated that both the police and security services are now fairly clear what has happened and what the next steps are. As I say, we hope we can get the rest of the transport system back up and running again as soon as possible.

“That’s really all I can say on that at the present time.”

Timeline of London terror:

July 7, 2005: Four blasts in London kill at least 56 people. 700 are wounded. Bombs explode on underground trains and double-decker bus.

* “Secret Group of al-Qaida’s Jihad in Europe” claims responsibility in the name of al-Qaida shortly after.

July 12: Police suspect four men of carrying out the bombings. They are later revealed to be British nationals.

* Police search six houses in and around the northern city of Leeds.

* Some 500 people are evacuated in the search, police arrest a relative of a suspect and seize explosives.

* Police also seize a vehicle in a car park, finding some explosives.

July 13: Security experts say the four bombers would have received training and direction from a more senior militant.

July 14: Thousands of Londoners hold a vigil in Trafalgar Square at the heart of the capital.

July 15: Police find highly volatile homemade explosive at sites linked to four suspected attackers.

* London police chief Ian Blair warns that another attack is a strong possibility.

July 16: Prime Minister Tony Blair says the “evil ideology” of al-Qaida must be pulled up by the roots.

July 17: Police release CCTV pictures of all four men walking into a railway station.

July 18: A report from the Royal Institute of International Affairs says backing the United States in Iraq put Britain more at risk. The accusation is forcefully rejected by Blair’s government.

July 19: British Muslim leaders and Prime Minister Blair discuss ways to tackle radical Islamists.

* Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, pledges to release an extra £20m (€28.8m) to fight terrorism.

July 21: Four small coordinated explosions strike three underground stations and one London bus. One person is injured.

* Tony Blair says at a news conference that the attacks are to scare people.

* Police chief Ian Blair says that while the attacks had echoes of the ones two weeks ago, it was too early to say whether they bore the hallmarks of al-Qaida.