British Home Secretary Charles Clarke on Wednesday broadened Britain’s response to the 7/7 bombings in London with plans to allow him to exclude or deport from Britain Islamist militants whose inflammatory language or behaviour is judged to foment or provoke terrorism. His announcement immediately preceded another wave of attacks on London transport.
The four bombings or attempted bombings that rocked London’s transport network on Thursday were intended to kill and bore similarities to the deadly blasts in the city two weeks ago, the city’s police chief said. ”I think the important point is that the intention of the terrorists has not been fulfilled,” he said.
Shock and bewilderment were etched on the faces of Londoners on Thursday as blasts struck the British capital’s transit system for the second time in as many weeks. British Prime Minister Tony Blair told a press conference the blasts were ”serious” and intended to scare people.
Explosions struck London’s transport system on Thursday, shutting down three underground train stations and blowing out the windows of a double-decker bus, authorities said, two weeks after four deadly suicide bombings. Metropolitan police Commissioner Ian Blair said there were four attempted explosions.
Three London subway stations were evacuated on Thursday following a number of unspecified ”incidents”, police said, as witnesses reported panic and screaming in the underground system. Scotland Yard said emergency services responded to an ”incident” on a bus in east London.
E-mail authentication standards aimed at reducing e-mail spam have been dogged by rivalry between vendors. But fresh hope surrounds an encryption technique that is an open technology and has considerable support. Yahoo and Cisco Systems are the lead vendors behind a new e-mail authentication specification that will be considered as a possible industry standard by the Internet Engineering Task Force.
A decade ago, when the internet bandwagon started to roll, the sense of fear from inside the literary establishment was palpable. With each new technological development, sinister soothsayers would trot out the latest in a series of dark predictions. Ebooks, we were told, would herald the death of paper-based novels.
Rio Ferdinand’s agent insists the England star will be staying at Manchester United. Ferdinand and United are still locked in talks over a new contract, which has led to Red Devils fans booing the central defender during pre-season matches. United manager Alex Ferguson and chief executive David Gill have both backed Ferdinand.
Disputed catches won’t be referred to the third umpire in Thursday’s first Ashes Test unless absolutely necessary. Australia captain Ricky Ponting and England skipper Michael Vaughan reached an agreement on Wednesday on the issue of contentious catches at a meeting with umpires Rudi Koertzen of South Africa and Aleem Dar of Pakistan, and match referee Ranjan Madugalle.
British lawmakers faced criticism from their own number on Tuesday after only 30 — less than 5% of the total — turned up for an anti-terrorism drill in Parliament. The exercise took place on Tuesday morning, when the chamber and galleries of the House of Commons were cleared after a planned "interruption" from a gallery.
Mention the word ”Ashes” to any cricket fan and they know instantly you are talking about a Test contest between England and Australia. But cricket’s oldest rivals had been playing each other for five years before the idea of the Ashes was born.
For eight years now English crowds have been taunting Jason Gillespie with shouts of ”Where’s your caravan?” But it wasn’t until Australia’s last tour of England in 2001 that the fast-bowler realised that home fans thought he looked like a gypsy with caravans — a common sight among the travelling communities of Britain.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Tuesday he is ”anxious” for Pakistani authorities to crack down on hard-line Islamic schools, which some of the London bombers are thought to have attended. Britain has been working with the Pakistani government to take measures against such schools, Blair told reporters in London.
The average woman in Britain spends more than £31 000 (about R361 000) on shoes during her lifetime and almost £16 000 (R186 000) on belts and other accessories, an insurance group said on Monday. A third of women say they have 25 pairs of shoes in their wardrobe.
England international winger Shaun Wright-Phillips on Monday completed his move to English Premiership champions Chelsea on a five-year contract, the club confirmed. Wright-Phillips joins Chelsea on a £21-million deal after agreeing personal terms and passing a medical on Monday afternoon.
Two of the London bombers travelled to Pakistan together last November and spent almost three months there, it emerged on Monday. Pakistani officials released dramatic footage showing Mohammad Sidique Khan, the man suspected of leading the London cell, arriving from Britain at Karachi airport on the same Turkish Airlines flight TK 1056 on November 19 last year, as Shehzad Tanweer.
As Britain looks at a further tightening of anti-terror laws in the wake of the July 7 London attacks, it has been openly suggested that the government would do well to investigate the failure or success of integrating Muslims into British society. Britain has a 1,5-million-strong Muslim community.
A curry chef in central England claimed on Saturday to have rustled up the world’s biggest curry — a sizzling 10-tonne chicken tikka masala cooked in a swimming-pool-sized pot. Vast quantities of chicken, vegetables, spices and curry powder were chopped and sliced in advance for the bid to bust the world record.
The famously fun-loving city of Newcastle in north-east England is no stranger to public nudity, but it is mainly carried out in the name of excessive drunkenness rather than art. In contrast, about 1 500 people stripped naked on Sunday at various locations for the latest work by United States artist Spencer Tunick.
Relations between Britain and Pakistan in the aftermath of the London bombings were put to the test on Sunday when one of Islamabad’s most senior diplomats advised against trying to shift responsibility to his country, and blamed British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s policies in the Middle East.
Tributes poured in on Monday for former British leader Sir Edward Heath who has died aged 89, with fellow political veteran Margaret Thatcher describing him as a ”political giant” and Prime Minister Tony Blair calling him a ”man of great integrity”. Heath passed away on Sunday after growing weak in recent days.
World oil prices rose on Monday as deadly Hurricane Emily continued to threaten oil platforms and refineries in the United States Gulf of Mexico, while a strike by Iraqi workers added to market jitters, dealers said. Emily caused two deaths on Sunday when winds slammed a helicopter trying to evacuate an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico.
Argentina upset Australia on grass to reach the semifinals of the Davis Cup on Sunday, and was joined by Russia, Slovakia and Croatia. Argentina beat the 28-time Davis Cup winner 4-1 in Sydney, Australia. Russia beat France to qualify for the semifinals for the first time since winning their only title in 2002.
A group of small European countries are seeking to water down key proposals agreed last week by G8 leaders in Gleneagles, leaked documents have revealed. The documents showed that Belgium was leading an initiative that would make it more difficult for 18 of the world’s poorest countries to be granted 100% debt relief.
Minutes after the explosions in central London, a quiet room inside the ambulance service headquarters on Waterloo Road became the heart of the capital’s emergency response. A chamber usually used for low-priority calls was transformed in a short space of time into the ”gold control room” — the communications centre for hundreds of ambulance workers.
Britain came to a standstill on Thursday at noon local time for two minutes of silence in memory of the victims of the London suicide bombings a week ago. Meanwhile, investigators carried out a forensic examination at a house in Aylesbury that may yield more clues into the bombings and those behind it.
The Football Association (FA) blasted Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho on Wednesday for his claims that Premiership rivals Arsenal received preferential treatment. The Blues manager insinuated on Tuesday that the presence of Gunners vice-chairperson David Dein on the FA’s board has implications for Chelsea.
British police have identified the man thought to be the mastermind behind last week’s bombings in London in which at least 52 people died, a report said on Thursday. Security sources believe the mastermind was involved in previous terror operations and has links with followers of Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda group.
The British police have yet to officially confirm media reports that the London attacks, which left at least 52 people dead, were the work of suicide bombers, but Home Secretary Charles Clarke has spoken of the influences that led ”four young men to blow themselves and others up on the Tube on a Thursday morning”.
Australia won the deciding one-day international against England by eight wickets at The Oval in London on Tuesday to take the three-match series 2-1. Set 229 to win, the world champions cruised to their target with more than 15 overs to spare. Adam Gilchrist scored his first one-day international 100 in more than a year.
Two vehicles believed to be linked to Thursday’s bombings in London were found in a Luton car park and at a home belonging to a South African woman living in Leeds’ Dewsbury area for more than 20 years, media reports said on Wednesday.
British police hunting the London bombers have made a ”series of arrests” following the identification of one of the attackers who died in the blast on a London bus last Thursday. The arrests were made during raids and searches of six properties in the northern city of Leeds early on Tuesday.