London+Bombings+2005

=**__// Overview of London Bombings //__**=

It happened on 7th July 2005, with heavy showers in places. 4 bombs were set off in a matter of 2 hours. 3 bombs were targeted at the underground system in central London called the Tube. 3 bombs set off simultaneously in a matter of minutes and 39 commuters died as a result. About an hour later, a bomb was set off on a double-decker bus in Tavistock Square, 13 people died. The 4 bombs being set off in London took away the lives of 56 people, including the 4 bombers, and leaving 700 injured. These series of suicide attacks happened during the morning “rush hour”, therefore the number of people who were affected be it witnesses or casualties was on a very large scale.

// __ More details __ //
//Suicide bombers//:
 * 1) Hasib Hussain
 * 2) Mohammad Sidique Khan
 * 3) Germaine Lindsay
 * 4) Shehzad Tanweer

At about 8.50am, the 3 simultaneous explosions happened – the first in a Circle Line tunnel between Liverpool Street and Aldgate stations, the second on the Circle Line just outside Edgware Road and the third in a Piccadilly Line tunnel between King’s Cross and Russell Square. At 9.47am, there was a fourth explosion on the upper deck of a no 30 bus in Tavistock Square.

__ Social Impact __
Firstly, security in UK was boosted to the highest and snipers from the government were allowed to kill any suspicious person suspected of carrying a bomb and whom refused to cooperate. Secondly, telephone networks were disrupted badly as there was an overflow of phone calls in that period of time. Thirdly, transport system in central London died on that day as there was a closure of underground system, closure of zone 1 bus networks and an evacuation of Russell Square. This terror incident really affected the people of London as they soon developed a phobia naturally of public transport and now preferred to walk. While some of the worse cases stayed at home and refused to go out of the house for the fear of the repetition of history.

It was until August that all transport went back to normal.

The media was also disrupted as many movies, drama broadcasts, music videos and soap operas were cancelled due to its content. For example, BBC Radio 4 ended its scheduled Classic Serial without explanation; it was to have been John Buchan's //Greenmantle//, the story of an attempt by German secret agents to engineer a jihad against the British in the Middle East during World War I.

Muslims were affected too, as the bombers were Muslims. A survey showed that 24% of 500 Muslims believed that the four suicide bombers were not responsible for the bombings. Therefore, after the whole incident there was a negative stereotyping of British Muslims living in London, or anybody with an overgrowth of facial hair. Racism against Muslims rose, and hate crimes increased compared to 2004 towards Muslims. This whole stereotyping of Muslims is called // ISLAMAPHOBIA //.

For the people who were involved in the bombings indirectly or directly, were scarred for the rest of their lives. As nightmares and recollections may haunt them, and some may even develop a psychological disorder called // Post Traumatic Stress Disorder // which may be serious to the extent of suicidal thoughts. They may also have a fear for loud noises, small spaces etc.

//__ Credits __//
4 Integrity Ng Zi Yan (15) Ng Ting Wei (14) //__References__//

Reaction by US President: [] Bus explosion: [] Sites of the bomb attacks: [] I nformation: [] [] [] []