Britain falls silent for 7/7 victims

Britain fell silent yesterday in tribute to victims of terrorism for the second time in less than a week as the July 7 bombings were remembered.

At 11.30am, a national minute of silence was held after the names of the 52 victims of the 2005 attacks were read out during a service at St Paul’s Cathedral.

Tube trains and buses stopped, while tennis was delayed at Wimbledon. After the silence, petals were released from the dome of the cathedral and four candles were lit to symbolise the four-blast site.

On Friday, a similar period of quiet was held a week on from the beach massacre in Tunisia in which 30 Britons were murdered.

Ten years ago, four suicide bombers carried out the single worst terrorist atrocity on British soil when they attacked London’s transport network.

Yesterday morning’s services were held at the exact time when the capital came under attack 10 years ago.

At Hyde Park, David Cameron, the prime minister, and London mayor Boris Johnson laid wreaths at the permanent memorial to the 52 people killed at 8.50am. At the same time, victims’ families and survivors gathered at stations affected by the outrage.

It was at around 8.50am a decade ago that there were three almost simultaneous explosions on the London Underground.

In a note attached to his wreath, Mr Cameron wrote: “To the victims of terrorism in London 10 years ago today. We grieve your loss and will honour your memory for ever.”

Speaking before the service, Mr Johnson said the suicide bombers had “failed in their aim”.

He said the terrorists “didn’t in any way change the fundamentals of London and what makes this city great”, adding: “Indeed, it’s gone from strength to strength in the 10 years since.”

At Edgware Road station, survivors laid flowers and gathered alongside families of victims in the ticket hall for a minute’s silence.

Flowers were laid and silences observed at King’s Cross and Aldgate. There was a service at Tavistock Square, where a fourth bomb was detonated on a bus just under an hour after the Underground blasts.

Mohammed Sidique Khan, aged 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, Hasib Hussain, 18, and Jermaine Lindsay, 19, met at Luton station that morning.

They took a train to King’s Cross, hugged, and then separated to carry out their missions.

Within three minutes of 8.50am, Tanweer detonated his bomb at Aldgate, Khan set his device off at Edgware Road, and Lindsay blew himself up between King’s Cross and Russell Square. Hussain detonated his device on a bus at Tavistock Square at 9.47am.