Open Directory Project at dmoz.org
Showing posts with label explosions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label explosions. Show all posts

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Police search Bedfordshire property

A property in the UK is being searched as part of the investigation into the weekend's bombing in Sweden, in which one man died, police have said.

A search warrant was executed at a property in Bedfordshire, under the Terrorism Act 2000, on Sunday night, the Metropolitan Police said. It follows the suspected suicide and car bombing in Stockholm on Saturday. Unconfirmed reports say the man killed by the blast was Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly, 28, who lived in Luton.

No arrests have been made and no hazardous materials were found at the property, Scotland Yard said. The search is expected to resume later on Monday. Several newspapers, Swedish websites and an Islamist forum have named Abdaly, an Iraqi-born Swede, as the attacker.

It is believed he blew himself up after he had tried to set off a car bomb in a busy street. Two people were injured.

BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera says the man suspected of having been the bomber was born in Iraq but moved to Sweden in the 1990s. He is then believed to have moved to the UK in 2001 to live and study in Luton. It is likely the British security services will be investigating how long he spent in the UK and the significance of that time, as well as establishing whether he was connected to other individuals, our correspondent adds.
Abdaly listed himself on Muslim dating website Muslima as a physical therapy graduate from Bedfordshire University.

The Daily Telegraph reports he would have turned 29 on Sunday and that his wife and young children still live in Luton. The paper quotes his neighbours as saying they last saw him two-and-a-half weeks ago.

Tahir Hussain, 33, a taxi driver who lives nearby, told the paper: "I used to see him around often. He didn't say much but seemed nice. I used to see him walking with his kids.

"I was shocked when I heard what happened because I never thought he could do such a thing."

There has been no comment from Bedfordshire University.

A Home Office spokesman said: "We remain in close contact with the Swedish authorities. It would be inappropriate to comment on their ongoing investigation at this time."
The car blew up in a busy shopping street of Drottninggatan at 1700 (1600 GMT) on Saturday and the second blast occurred 10 to 15 minutes later on a street about 300m away, Swedish police said. Witnesses said a man found dead after the second blast had been carrying an explosive device.

Swedish PM Fredrik Reinfeldt said the attacks were unacceptable in Sweden's "open society", which he said was a democracy that respected different cultures. The country's police are investigating a set of e-mails sent shortly before the blasts threatening attacks because Sweden had sent troops to Afghanistan.

Sweden has some 500 soldiers deployed in Afghanistan as part of the international military force.

The e-mails, with MP3 audio files in Swedish and Arabic, were sent to the Swedish security service and the TT news agency.

They called for "mujahideen" - or Islamist fighters - to rise up in Sweden and Europe, promising Swedes would "die like our brothers and sisters".

They also attacked the country for caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad drawn by Swedish artist Lars Vilks.

If confirmed as a suicide bombing, the attack would be the first of its kind in Sweden.

Sweden probes Terrorist Attack

Two explosions in Sweden's capital Stockholm are being investigated as a "crime of terror", officials say.


A car blew up in a busy shopping area on Saturday afternoon, followed moments later by a second explosion nearby.

Witnesses said a man found dead after the second blast had been carrying an explosive device. Two people were hurt.

Swedish PM Fredrik Reinfeldt condemned the attacks as unacceptable in an open society with a functioning democracy that respects different cultures.

"Our democracy functions well," he told a press conference. "Those who feel frustration or anger have the opportunity to express it without resorting to violence."
Swedish security police have not yet released the dead man's name, although director of operations Anders Thornberg says they now have a clearer idea about him.
"As far as we know it looks like he has been working for himself but we don't know, we have to make that really sure," he said.

"So we are investigating whether there could be more perpetrators. We don't know."

Police are investigating a set of e-mails sent shortly before the blasts threatening attacks because Sweden had sent troops to Afghanistan.

Sweden has some 500 soldiers deployed in Afghanistan as part of the international military force.

Police are trying to work out whether the explosions were an isolated attack or part of a larger conspiracy, says the BBC's Stephen Evans in Stockholm.

The e-mails, with MP3 audio files in Swedish and Arabic, were sent to the Swedish security service and the TT news agency.

They called for "mujahideen" - or Islamist fighters - to rise up in Sweden and Europe, promising Swedes would "die like our brothers and sisters".

Saturday, December 11, 2010

explosions in centre of the Swedish capital

One person has been killed and two others injured in two explosions that rocked the centre of the Swedish capital, Stockholm.


A car blew up near the busy shopping street of Drottninggatan and another blast followed nearby minutes later.

Swedish press attributed the second blast to a suicide bomber but police said no cause had yet been determined.

Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said a "terrorist attack" which could have been "truly catastrophic" had failed.

Tweeting on the blasts, he described them as "most worrying".

A local news agency, TT, said it had received a threatening e-mail shortly before the blasts, which called for "mujahideen", or Islamist fighters, to rise up in Sweden and Europe.

Attacking the country over caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed drawn by Swedish artist Lars Vilks as well as Sweden's military presence in Afghanistan, the e-mail promised Swedes would "die like our brothers and sisters".

Sweden has 500 soldiers deployed in Afghanistan as part of the international peacekeeping force.

In November, the country raised its terror alert level from low to elevated because of a "shift in activities" among Swedish-based groups that could be plotting attacks.
Both blasts hit central Stockholm as the streets were busy with people out Christmas shopping.

The car exploded at 1700 (1600 GMT) and the second blast occurred 10 to 15 minutes later on a street about 300m (300yds) away, police spokesman Kjell Lindgren said.

A man was found dead near the site of the second explosion and two people with minor injuries were also found nearby.

Asked if the dead man had somehow blown himself up, Mr Lindgren said: "It is possible."

Unconfirmed reports in Sweden's Aftonbladet newspaper said the man was carrying pipe bombs, as well as a backpack full of nails.

Another police spokesman, Ulf Johansson, told the BBC police would not rush to judgement.

"We need more investigation and of course we need more witnesses to give us the information of what actually has happened," he said.

He said the car had contained gas canisters and had "exploded with a series of minor explosions".

The identities of the dead man and those injured have not been released.
A former employee of the Associated Press news agency, Gabriel Gabiro, was close to the second blast.
There was a man lying on the ground with blood coming out in the area of his belly, and with his personal belongings scattered around him."

A trained medic named only as Pascal also said the man appeared to have a stomach injury.

"It looked as if the man had carried something that exploded in his stomach," he said on the website of newspaper Dagens Nyheter.

"He had no injuries to the face or body in general and the shops around were not damaged."

Share

Twitter Delicious Facebook Digg Stumbleupon Favorites More