UK: BRICK LANE BOMB WRAP

Описание: (25 Apr 1999) English/Nat

A car bomb exploded in a busy street in east London on Saturday, injuring seven people and sending fear through a multi-racial community.

The bomb exploded late in the afternoon in Brick Lane, the centre of the city's biggest Bangladeshi communities and the site of a popular Saturday market.

It's the second bomb in a week in the English capital.

Police at the scene of Saturday's bomb blast in a busy east London street said a man had been trying to hand in a suspicious package to authorities when it exploded.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"At 3 minutes to six this evening an explosion occurred in Brick Lane. As we understand it at this time a man found something which he was taking to the police station. I'm unable to say what that was. But the police office in Brick Lane was in fact closed and the device exploded in this gentleman's car. As I understand it there were no serious injuries and the driver of the vehicle was only slightly hurt."
SUPER CAPTION: Superintendent David Finnimore

Police said that the explosive device was similar to last week's nail bomb in Brixton, south London, which injured 39 people.

They are now treating both attacks as racially motivated.

Locals in Brick Lane are stunned by the explosion which occurred at a busy time and could have caused many more injuries.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"The people are very shocked as it happened because Brick Lane is a street where everyone is walking on the street, full of life, they're doing their shopping, they're eating at restaurants, men, women, children walking on the street. So the community here is very shocked and I think it will take some time for them to understand why it happened here."
SUPER CAPTION: Ala Uddin, local councillor

Two hours after the blast, police said they received a call from a person who claimed to represent the extreme right-wing group, Combat 18, saying it had carried out the bombing.

Combat 18 also claimed responsibility for last week's nail bomb in Brixton.

Witnesses walking along Brick Lane when the bomb went off said the noise had been deafening.

They say the obvious targetting of ethnic communities is causing concern.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"Our car is just that one, the one you can see. It would have been about 5 cars behind the one that exploded. So we were approaching our car and suddenly we heard that huge explosion, gone deaf and whole body covered in a shower of broken glass and splinters, and it was all smoky and we saw the red car which was on fire, and then 5 or 6 minutes later another explosion which could have been the petrol tank exploding."
SUPER CAPTION: Voxpop

The Royal London Hospital treated five people, two women and three men, for minor injuries.

In Washington for the NATO summit, Prime Minister Tony Blair was quick to react, saying every effort will be made to find those responsible for both bombs.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"I've obviously had a report on this .. .all I would say is that we will carry on the enquiries you would expect us to make in an instance of this kind. These things are outrageous and we will not tolerate them and we will make every effort to find out those responsible and they will be prosecuted and brought to justice - there's no doubt about that at all."
SUPER CAPTION: Tony Blair, British Prime Minister

Police say the device used on Saturday was similar to the one used in Brixton.

In the case of last week's bombing, three other far-right groups as well as Combat 18 all later claimed responsibility.

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