Parsons Green 'explosion': Blast sends 'fireball' through packed District line Tube train - latest news

Commuters fled in terror after a blast sent a "fireball" and a "wall of flame" through a packed London Underground train at Parsons Green station.

Witnesses reported seeing several people hurt and "covered in blood" after a "flash and a bang" on the District Line Tube in west London on Friday morning.

Pictures and video posted on social media showed a flaming bucket - which is said to have had wires coming from it - inside a plastic carrier bag on the floor of a carriage.

Some passengers are said to have suffered facial burns. Others were trampled and suffered crush injuries in the rush to escape the packed carriage.

Emergency services including armed police rushed to the scene after being alerted at around 8.20am.

Police have not given details about the suspected cause of the explosion, but the incident comes with Britain on high alert after four terror attacks in 2017. The official threat level currently stands at severe - meaning an attack is seen as "highly likely". More at link.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/apos-explosion-apos-tube-train-074454339.html

Oh God, more suffering and horror. For nothing.

22 injured, none life-threatening, mainly burns from the fire ball.    Device was probably an IED.   LL
ETA It seems the device had a timer.

Looks like it - thankfully - didn't go off as intended.

Britain raises number of bombing injured to 29.

The National Health Service says 21 people are being treated and eight others have already been discharged. The London Ambulance Service says it took 19 patients to hospitals, most with minor injuries. The others went in themselves.

Police say most of those injured by an improvised explosive device on Friday suffered from flash burns. They say there have been no reports of serious life-threatening injuries. The device burst into flames aboard a train at the Parsons Green station during the morning rush hour. London police are conducting a wide manhunt for the person or persons responsible.

Between the Lidl frozen food bag, and the fairy lights timer, something tells me this particular scumbag isn't exactly an Einstein....

London Tube terror attack: Isis claims responsibility for bombing as police launch major manhunt.

A huge manhunt is underway for those responsible for a terror attack that sparked panic on a packed London Tube train and left 29 people injured though, miraculously, no one was killed.

Isis has claimed responsibility for the attack, which happened during the rush hour commute when an improvised explosive device was detonated sending a “fireball” through the train carriage at Parsons Green station in south-west London.

Police reportedly know the identity of the suspected bomber and officers are “chasing down suspects”.

Late on Friday night, Theresa May raise the terror threat level to critical, the highest level, which means authorities think another attack may be “imminent”.

It is the fourth time the assessment has been placed at the highest level for the past 11 years.     Mor at link.
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/parsons-green-explosion-sparks-panic-london-tube-station-rush-hour-075222257.html

Parsons Green attack: 18-year-old man arrested as UK terror threat level at 'critical' - latest news.

Detectives investigating the terrorist attack at Parsons Green have made a "significant" arrest in connection with the attempted bombing.

The 18-year-old man was arrested by Kent Police in the port area of Dover on Saturday morning under section 41 of the Terrorism Act.

He remains in custody at a local police station from where he will be transferred to a south London police station.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu, Senior National Co-ordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing, said: “We have made a significant arrest in our investigation this morning. Although we are pleased with the progress made, this investigation continues and the threat level remains at critical.

“The public should remain vigilant as our staff, officers and partners continue to work through this complex investigation. We are not, at this time, changing our protective security measures and the steps taken to free up extra armed officers remain in place.

“This arrest will lead to more activity from our officers. For strong investigative reasons we will not give any more details on the man we arrested at this stage.”

The development came after Prime Minister ordered troops onto the streets on Friday night after a suspected Islamist placed a powerful time bomb on a packed rush hour train heading towards Westminster.

Theresa May took the decision after the independent Joint Terrorism Assessment Centre (JTAC) recommended raising the terror threat to its highest level, Critical, meaning another attack is expected. More at link.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/09/16/parsons-green-explosion-uk-terror-threat-level-critical-latest/

Parsons Green: Armed police search home over Tube bombing.

Armed police have evacuated and are searching a house in Sunbury, Surrey, in connection with Friday's attack on a London Tube train.

It follows the arrest of an 18-year-old man on suspicion of a terror offence.

The arrest is "significant" but the terror threat level remains at "critical", Home Secretary Amber Rudd said.

The man was held in Dover on Saturday and taken to a Kent police station - he will be moved to south London later.

Thirty people were injured after the explosion on a train at Parsons Green.

In Sunbury, residents near to the address have been told to leave their homes and cordons are in place at a 100-metre radius to the property.

Ms Rudd chaired a meeting of the government's Cobra emergency committee and it concluded the UK terrorist threat level should remain at "critical".

After the meeting, she said it was "much too early" to say whether those behind the attack were known to authorities, adding: "The operation is ongoing".
More at link.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41292528

The suspected Parsons Green bomber was a 'problematic foster child' who was allegedly arrested two weeks ago near where the attack took place before being freed.
Police are searching a house in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, after the 18-year-old was detained in the 'port area' of Dover earlier today while apparently attempting to leave the country.
The home raided by police in connection with the attack, which injured 30, is owned by a couple who were both appointed MBEs for fostering hundreds of children.
Penelope Jones, 71, and her husband Ronald, 88, have raised 268 foster children in the house over three decades and the last eight have been refugees.
Officers stormed the house on Cavendish Road at 2pm around six hours after apprehending the suspect in the departure lounge of the Port of Dover.
Around 60 people were evacuated from near the house, where locals claimed 'explosives' were found in the garden. There is no suggestion the Joneses had any knowledge of any alleged wrongdoing at the property.
Close friends of pensioners Penny and Ron Jones said the couple - who are widely respected in the local area - were at 'their end' with the teenager.
Serena Barber, 47, who has known the couple all her life and lives in a property backing on to theirs, said: 'They have two boys at the moment, both are foreign. One is very quiet and polite, the other who is 18 is awful.'
At least eight of the Jones' foster children have been refugees, with some coming from Iraq, Eritrea, Syria, Albania and Afghanistan. The couple were honoured by the Queen in 2009 for their services to children and families.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4889860/May-raises-level-critical-ISIS-claim-Tube-attack.html#ixzz4sscgozXX
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Who on earth thought it was a good idea for such elderly people to be fostering young 'refugees'?

Incidentally, this couldn't be more embarrassing for Mrs May, as right now, it looks as if Trump was right about this PoS. He was an import, one of those sad-eyed 'refugees'.

UK police arrest 2nd man in London subway attack case.

LONDON (AP) — London police say a second man has been arrested in connection with the London subway attack. Police said Sunday that a 21-year-old man was arrested late Saturday night in Hounslow in west London and is being held under the Terrorism Act. He is being questioned at a south London police station but has not been charged or identified.

Two men are now in custody for possible roles in the bombing attack on a rush-hour subway train Friday morning that injured 29 people in London. An 18-year-old man was arrested Saturday in the departure area of the port of Dover, where ferries leave for France.

The two arrests indicate police and security services believe the attack at the Parsons Green station was part of a coordinated plot, not the act of a single person. "We are still pursing numerous lines of enquiry and at a great pace," counter-terrorism coordinator Neil Basu of the London police said late Saturday.

Britain's terror threat level remains at "critical" — the highest level — meaning that authorities believe another attack is imminent. The official threat level is not likely to be lowered until police believe all of the plotters have been taken into custody.

Police on Saturday launched a massive armed search in the southwestern London suburb of Sunbury. Neighbors were evacuated in a rush from the area and kept away for nearly 10 hours before they were allowed to return to their homes.

The Islamic State says the attack Friday was carried out by one of its affiliated units. The improvised explosive device placed on the subway train only partially detonated, limiting the number of injuries.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said the casualties would have been far higher if the bomb had fully detonated. Frustrated by the string of terrorist attacks in recent months, she said officials will have to work harder to make bomb components more difficult to obtain.

Britain has endured four other attacks this year, which have killed a total of 36 people. The other attacks in London — near Parliament, on London Bridge and near a mosque in Finsbury Park in north London — used vehicles and knives to kill and wound.

Dramatic moment Syrian refugee, 21, is pinned to a wall by police outside a takeaway as he becomes second man to be arrested over Parsons Green 'bucket bomb'
Yahya Faroukh, 21, was taken into the home of Penelope and Ronald Jones in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey
He had been placed with the Joneses after reaching Britain in 2013 from Al Harah near Damascus, Syria
Police swooped on the foster carers' house and a home opposite Heathrow airport where Faroukh lives
Footage shows him being restrained by officers after a minor struggle outside a chicken shop in Hounslow
The first suspect arrested, an 18-year-old, is also believed to have lived under Mr and Mrs Jones foster care
At least 30 people were injured in the Parsons Green bomb on the London Underground on Friday morning
Home Secretary Amber Rudd announced yesterday that the terror threat level has been reduced to 'severe'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4893510/Syrian-Heathrow-home-raided-Parsons-Green.html#ixzz4t0ejkRFS
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Doubtless the scumbag had sad eyes and turned on the waterworks for the benefit of the cameras....

Lord save us from do-gooders.

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/15543955.London_tube_bomber_suspect_took_CalMac_ferry_to_Rothesay_to_visit_fellow_Syrian_refugees/

London tube bomber suspect took a CalMac ferry to visit fellow Syrian refugees in Rothesay.

Yahyah Farroukh, 21, boarded the ferry at Wemyss Bay and travelled to the Isle of Bute to see relatives.

Photographs posted to his Facebook page show him standing on the deck of the ferry.

It is understood he also came to Greenock to visit another one of his relatives.

He was arrested on Saturday after the failed attack.

An 18-year-old man was also arrested.

Thanks a million, Sturgeon.

Third arrest made in London subway attack.

British police have arrested a third suspect in connection with the bomb that partially exploded on a London subway last week. Police said they arrested a 25-year-old man in Wales on Tuesday evening under the Terrorism Act. They say a property in Newport, Wales 140 miles (225 kilometers) west of London, was being searched.

Two other men arrested over the weekend — an 18-year-old refugee from Iraq and a 21-year-old from Syria — remain in custody. Neither has been charged. London police have not released details from the investigation.

Commander Dean Haydon, head of the Metropolitan Police Counter-Terrorism Command, said searches were underway at four different locations, including three that were in progress before Tuesday. The searches may take "some days to complete" as detectives seek to determine the "full facts" behind the attack, Haydon said.

He asked the public to "look out for anything that seems out of place, unusual, or just doesn't seem to fit in with day-to-day life" and to notify police immediately if something seems amiss. The homemade explosive device, which had been placed inside a bucket that was enclosed by a shopping bag, injured 30 people when it partially detonated inside a crowded subway car on Friday morning.

The subway was stopped at the Parsons Green station when the device went off. Home Secretary Amber Rudd said the rush-hour explosion would have caused many more injuries if it had fully detonated. Britain's official terrorist threat level was raised to "critical" after the attack — meaning an attack was judged to be imminent — but it was lowered after the first two arrests.

Those suspects are believed to have at one point lived in a foster home in Sunbury, a suburb southwest of London. Details about the third suspect have not yet emerged. Islamic State extremists have claimed responsibility but British officials have said they don't see proof of a connection yet.

Police arrest 3 men in Wales in connection with Parsons Green bombing.

A police officer stands behind cordon tape after a man was arrested in connection with an explosion on the London Underground, in Newport, Wales, Britain, September 20, 2017.

British police have arrested three men in Wales over the bombing of a busy commuter train in west London last week, which injured 30 people.

A 25-year-old man was arrested on Tuesday evening in Newport, Wales, while two others — a 48-year-old and 30-year-old — were taken into custody on Wednesday morning.

The Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command made the arrests, Scotland Yard said, supported by Gwent Police and the Welsh Extremism and Counter Terrorism Unit.

Searches at the two addresses in Newport are ongoing.

"This continues to be a fast-moving investigation. A significant amount of activity has taken place since the attack on Friday," said Dean Haydon, head of the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command.

"We now have three men in custody and searches are continuing at four addresses. Detectives are carrying out extensive inquiries to determine the full facts behind the attack."

The home-made bomb went off on Friday during the morning rush hour on a packed train at Parsons Green underground station, engulfing the carriage in flames.

On Saturday, police arrested an 18-year-old man in Dover, south-east England, and a 21-year-old in west London over the attack. The latter was named as Yahyah Farroukh, a Syrian refugee who worked in a fast food restaurant in London.

A total of 36 people have been killed in Britain this year in militant attacks.
http://uk.businessinsider.com/uk-police-arrest-third-man-in-connection-with-parsons-green-bombing-2017-9

Parsons Green bomb: Police make sixth arrest in inquiry.

A search is being carried out by police at an address in Thornton Heath, south London.

Police have arrested a 17-year-old boy in south London in connection with last Friday's terror attack on a Tube train.

The teenager was detained after officers executed a warrant in Thornton Heath at around midnight on Thursday.

It takes the total number of arrests in the investigation to six, all of whom remain in custody at a south London police station.

A homemade bomb partially exploded on a rush hour District Line train at Parsons Green, injuring 30 people.

Police have begun a search of a property in St Paul's Road where the teenager was arrested under Section 41 of the Terrorism Act.

Neighbours told the BBC it was is a privately owned "halfway house" used by asylum-seekers, with at least six bedrooms.

They also described how police officers in riot helmets arrived at the scene around midnight and broke down the door.

More officers later arrived in overalls to search the property, with some seen searching an overgrown garden and others erecting a tent on the street in front of the house.

Commander Dean Haydon, head of Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command, said: "This continues to be a fast-moving investigation.

"A significant amount of activity has taken place since the attack on Friday.

"We now have six males in custody and searches are continuing at five addresses.

"Detectives are carrying out extensive inquiries to determine the full facts behind the attack."

Further searches are continuing at two addresses in Surrey and are expected to last some days, the police said.

Three men, aged 25, 30 and 48, have been arrested in Newport, south Wales, a 21-year-old - named as Yahyah Farroukh - was detained in Hounslow, west London, and an 18-year-old man was arrested at the Port of Dover.

The 18-year-old arrested man is thought to have lived in a foster home owned by Ronald and Penelope Jones, in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey.

He is thought to have moved to the UK from Iraq aged 15 when his parents died.

The BBC has learnt that he had been referred to an anti-extremist programme before his arrest.

It is not known who made the referral and when, or how serious the concerns were.

A time limit on Mr Farroukh's detention is expected to expire on Thursday, while detectives have been given until Saturday to continue questioning the 18-year-old.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41343301

They're all over the place, looks like.

Parsons Green bombing: police release 21-year-old man.

Man, thought to be Yahyah Farroukh, released as officers search Thornton Heath house after arrest of teenager.

A 21-year-old man who was arrested in connection with the Parsons Green terrorist attack has been released from custody with no further action, Scotland Yard has said.

The man – understood to be Yahyah Farroukh, who was arrested in Hounslow on Saturday – was released as police were searching a property in south London after arresting a sixth person in connection with the tube bombing.

The Thornton Heath house was cordoned off on Thursday morning with a police car outside and officers standing guard following the arrest of a 17-year-old boy shortly after midnight. Officers arriving at the scene carried equipment including garden rakes. Some appeared to be trying to gain access to an overgrown area at the rear of the property.

A man in a forensic suit was seen entering the property, which neighbours said had been a halfway house or hostel for young people.

One neighbour, Paula, 43, who declined to give her surname, said she witnessed the beginning of the raid.

“I just heard banging, woke up, looked through my window and there were loads of police officers out here,” she said.

“My husband came out to see if there was any concern. They said there wasn’t any concern, they were just acting on intelligence. I didn’t see them arresting anyone.”

Describing the officers involved, she said: “Some were in suits, some were in uniforms ... They looked like detectives.”

Paula said police had knocked the door off its hinges and she had seen it lying on the ground, but the door looked intact on Thursday morning.

“I didn’t see much more; I just heard the loud noise. I thought they were fighting originally,” she said.

The south London property was registered as a house in multiple occupation (HMO) with Croydon council. A spokesman for the council said the house was being rented by Lambeth council, which is also in south London.

HMOs can be used to house homeless people, unaccompanied minors and asylum seekers.

The Thornton Heath house was bought by a company called 35BR Ltd for £650,000 in 2013. According to Companies House documents, the company has three directors, including Gill Fielding, who has appeared on Channel 4’s Secret Millionaire and as a business expert on The Apprentice – You’re Fired.

35BR is owned by a second company, 136 CR Ltd, which has been managed by Fielding’s C&M Wealth Group since 2015. A spokesman for the company declined to comment.

According to documents on Croydon council’s website, the property owners were ordered to remove litter from the property under environmental regulations in 2014.

Pamela Emanuel, 54, whose home overlooks the address where the suspect was arrested, said the house was occupied by recent immigrants to the UK. Six young men lived there at any one time, she said. The most recent set had been there for about four months.

“They were not menacing, they were OK,” she said. “They were the best neighbours we’ve had [in that address] since it’s been there.”

The residents were young Middle Eastern men aged between 17 and 25, she said. “They were young, you could tell by the way that they behaved. They never gave any trouble; they were friendly enough.” She said the property had previously housed care leavers, who were regularly in trouble with the police.

Paula backed up Emanuel’s account of the residents. “There’s different people that live there. I don’t know them; never had any problems with them before. I’ve never seen any women in there, mostly just young boys. They do look young, but why they are living there on their own, I don’t know,” she said.

“There is no foster parent, I’ve never seen any adult foster parents. Usually people come and do checks, I don’t know if they are social services. I think there’s about six rooms over there; most of the time it’s full. They last for six months and then they go, I think individually. It’s quite shocking that this has happened.”

A 28-year-old woman whose home faces the address said she was not particularly surprised to see it raided. “The house has been trouble in and out for a while,” she said.

“They raided the house a couple of years ago with armed police and took away two boys. I’ve lived here nine years and there’s probably been an incident with police every year, this one probably being the biggest.”

She said the type of difficulties previously concerning the house had been “fights, and I don’t really know the details, drugs ... Nothing, from what I know, about terror.”

She said she had not heard the raid taking place. “It must have been a very discreet raid, because the raid I heard two years ago, I heard that and I heard them thumping the door,” the woman said.

Phil Burt, 67, who has lived on the opposite side of the street for 40 years, said he heard “enormous shouts” at about midnight. He said the shouting was so loud it made at least three dogs in the area bark, but was unsure as to whether or not it came from police.

There are five males in custody as investigations into the bombing continue. Three men aged 25, 30 and 48 were arrested in Newport, south Wales, and an 18-year-old was arrested in Dover.

Detectives have been given until Saturday to continue questioning the 18-year-old.

The five men and the 17-year-old boy were being detained at a police station in south London, Scotland Yard said.

The 25-year-old arrested in Newport is understood to be a Kurdish painter and decorator known as Bilal to neighbours and friends who uses a Facebook account with the profile name Mahdi Rahimi.

He is believed to have arrived in the UK around eight years ago and has been described as hard-working, friendly and helpful.

Police were continuing to search a property in the street where Bilal lived and a terraced house close to the city centre believed to house refugees. The two men, aged 30 and 48, were arrested there.

The attack at Parsons Green happened last Friday during rush hour on a London underground train, shortly after it pulled into the west London station. A bomb built inside a plastic bucket held in a Lidl bag partly detonated. Experts say photographs suggest the initiating charge had failed to detonate the main explosives.

The train was packed with commuters and schoolchildren. Thirty people were injured. Some sustained flash burns and others minor wounds as people scrambled to escape.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/sep/21/parsons-green-bombing-police-make-sixth-arrest-in-south-london-raid

ETA The 48 year old man has also been released, LL

UK police chief says London subway bomb loaded with shrapnel.

LONDON (AP) — London's police chief says the bomb that failed to fully detonate last week in a London subway car was loaded with explosives and shrapnel. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick told LBC radio on Friday that the bomb discovered last week was "very dangerous" and could have been "much worse."

Thirty people were injured when the homemade bomb partly detonated on a train stopped at Parsons Green station in southwest London. Authorities say two of the six men arrested over the bombing were released Thursday without being charged. Four others remain in custody.

One of those released is a 21-year-old, originally from Syria, detained outside a fast-food restaurant in west London on Saturday. The Syrian refugee's employer says the man's mother suffered a heart attack after hearing of her son's arrest.

Oh, that's horrible!

British police charge 18-year-old over London subway bombing.

British police on Friday charged an 18-year-old man with attempted murder and causing an explosion over last week's bomb attack on the London subway. Ahmed Hassan was accused of planting the bomb at Parsons Green station on Sept. 15. The Metropolitan Police force said Hassan is charged with attempting to "murder persons traveling on a District Line train" and of using a chemical compound known as TATP to cause an explosion likely to endanger life.

Hassan, who is originally from Iraq, spoke only to confirm his name and address during a brief court appearance on Friday. Prosecutors allege that he made the bomb from materials he ordered online and left it on the crowded subway train, getting off one stop before it exploded.

He was ordered detained until his next hearing on Oct. 13. Hassan was arrested Saturday at the port of Dover, departure point for ferries to France. After his arrest, police searched the suburban home of a couple who had fostered more than 200 children, including refugees from the Middle East. Hassan confirmed in court that he lived at the address.

Thirty people were injured when the homemade bomb — hidden in a plastic bucket inside a plastic supermarket bag — partly detonated at the height of the morning rush hour. The attack sparked a huge hunt for the perpetrators and prompted officials to briefly raise the national terrorism threat to the highest level, "critical."

London police chief Cressida Dick said Friday that the "very dangerous" bomb was packed with shrapnel and the carnage could have been much worse. Police have arrested six people in all over the attack. Three — including a 17-year-old — have been released without charge, while two men remain in custody.

Seventh man arrested in Cardiff over Parsons Green Tube bomb attack.

The 20-year-old suspect is in custody in London after the arrest in Cardiff, where police are continuing to search a property.

Police have made a seventh arrest in connection with the Parsons Green Tube bomb attack, Scotland Yard has said.

A 20-year-old man is being held in custody at a south London police station after being arrested by counter-terror officers in Cardiff at about 6am on Monday.

Police are also searching an address in the Welsh capital.

It is the seventh arrest by the Metropolitan Police following the failed bomb attack on an underground train at Parsons Green Tube station, southwest London, earlier this month.

One person has been charged in relation to the attack, three people remain in police custody and three people have been released with no further action.

Ahmed Hassan, 18, of Sunbury, Surrey, has been charged with attempted murder and using the chemical compound triacetone triperoxide - known as TATP - to cause an explosion likely to endanger life.

The device used in the attack failed to detonate fully. No one was killed in the explosion, but 30 people were injured.
http://news.sky.com/story/man-arrested-in-cardiff-over-parsons-green-tube-bomb-attack-11052770