Posted by The Punch on
Anthony, a grandson of erstwhile Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Atanda Fatayi-Williams, declared missing since Thursday's terrorist attacks in London, has been confirmed dead.
Anthony, a grandson of erstwhile Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Atanda Fatayi-Williams, declared missing since Thursday's terrorist attacks in London, has been confirmed dead.
The Nigerian High Commission in Britain told the News Agency of Nigeria that the body of the 26-year old oil executive was among those retrieved from the wreckage of bus number 30 blown apart by the terrorists at the Tavistock Square.
The acting spokesperson of the High Commission, Mr. Joel Udegbulam, confirmed that another Nigerian, 55-year-old Ms. Ojara Ikeagwu, a social worker and mother of three, also died in the bus and her remains also retrieved.
Police on Tuesday raided five premises in Leeds and confirmed later the arrest of some unspecified number of people in connection with the investigation into the blasts.
The Police also stated that four of the bombers might have died in the blasts that occurred inside the train.
Two more names - Jamie Gordon and Philip Stuart Russell- of the dead in the blasts, were made public.
Two other people killed in the blast have also been formally identified but not yet named.
Their identities might be confirmed on Wednesday (today) following the opening of an inquest into their deaths.
The total number of formal identifications now stands at five. Susan Levy, 53, was the first victim of the blasts to be named on Monday
The premises raided in Leeds are home to a large Muslim population of South Asian origin.
Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Ian Blair called the operation in the West Yorkshire city 'significant," as Sky News television reported that several arrests had been carried out.
Citing police sources, Sky News added that four of the bombers were among the 52 confirmed dead in Thursday's bombing of three Underground subway trains and a double-decker bus.
There was no immediate confirmation of the reports from police, but there was little doubt that the investigation into the bloodiest attack on British soil since World War II was moving fast.
Closer to London, police sealed off a train station and parking lot in Luton, northwest of the capital, to recover a car that might offer clues into the bombings.
Islamic extremists, possibly with links to Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network, are believed to have carried out the bombings.
With daily life in London virtually back to normal, the police chief warned in a BBC interview against complacency, saying: 'Another attack is likely. There's no doubt about that."
The death toll is certain to rise, with police liaison officers assisting a total of 74 families.
Police set up a vast temporary mortuary in a military barracks just east of the city centre where next of kin were being taken to identify victims.
It was gathered that the bomb-gutted Number 30 bus - in which 13 were killed - was proving the most productive hunting ground for detectives.
'There are two bodies which have to be examined in great detail because they appear to have been holding the bomb or sitting on top of it," a senior police source told The Times newspaper.
The Financial Times newspaper said progress had been made toward naming the individual suspected of being responsible for the bus blast.
Meanwhile, the US embassy in London said that a ban since Friday on US air force personnel entering London in the wake of the bombings had been lifted following bitter criticism from police, politicians and tourism officials.
About 10,000 US servicemen at two air bases in the east of England had been ordered to keep out of London, despite appeals for life in London to resume as quickly as possible to make clear that Britons will not be cowed by terrorists.
The Punch, Wednesday July 13, 2005