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London Police Shoot, Kill Man in Stockwell Tube Station
Aired July 22, 2005 - 09:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our continuing coverage of this latest round of bombings. In this case, mostly bungled bombings in the city of London. This morning, over the past four-and-a-half hours, five hours, it's been a very busy time in London for the authorities. As in quick succession, we hear about the pursuit of an apparent suspect into those bombings into a subway station, Stockwell specifically, not far from where everything began yesterday at the Oval Station, him getting -- jumping over the turnstiles, on to a carriage, ultimately shot dead by antiterrorist police there in London.
Meanwhile, we're hearing on the investigative front that the authorities, using those closed-circuit televisions, which are just all over the city of London, have been able to identify, at very least, four faces of people linked to those bombings. The question is, is that person who was pursue and shot dead one of the four? Do we have names? All things we can't say just yet as we await a police briefing.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: In that police briefing they are supposed to release the pictures of these suspects. They make really quick work of this, but you've got to believe that maybe some of them have already gotten out of the country. What a day.
O'BRIEN: Well, it's hard to say. You don't know how well they're financed, and how they're organized, and whether they're homegrown. There are many factors which have a lot to do with this, and for that matter we can not say for certain they have a direct link to what happened on July 7th. Could be copycat.
COSTELLO: Could be.
O'BRIEN: In any case, we have been hearing from witnesses all morning long who have described that harrowing scene at that Stockwell Station. Yesterday we were hearing about the attempted bombings. This morning, as you read it and as you hear them talk about it, it sounds like a scene from a movie. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK WHITBY, WITNESS: I was sitting on the tube train. I hadn't pulled out of the station at this time. The doors were still open. A loud shout, get down, get out! I looked to my right, I saw a chap run on to the train, Asian guy. He ran on to the train. He was running so fast, he sort of tripped. But he was being pursued by three guys. One had a black handgun in his hand, left hand. As he went down, two of them dropped on to him to hold him down and the other one fired. I heard five shots, basically.
I was about maybe four, five yards along from where this actually happened. I watched it. I actually saw it.
QUESTION: The train had pulled into station and someone had come on the train?
WHITBY: Yes, the train was sitting in the station, the doors open, waiting to pull out. It seemed to be taking quite a long time. And then I heard all this, get down, get out. And then, I looked to my right, saw the guy run onto train. He was running so fast, he tripped. And bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, five shots.
QUESTION: What was going through your mind at that time?
WHITBY: I thought it was quite surreal, really. I think I hung around longer than I should, because by this time, most people had got off, but there was this sort of elderly woman, sort of large build. She having a -- she couldn't move very fast. So I sort of tried to usher her along, helped her along go up the escalator. As I was getting off the escalator, there must have been 15, 20 police coming down, all of them armed, submachine gun, pistols.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shouting. Everyone was, you know, running into the station, and the actual passengers, some were crying. They were scared. They didn't know exactly what was happening. And as soon as the policemen or the marksmen were shouting opens the gates, open the gates, the underground man was just standing, looking at them. They didn't know what to do, and eventually they, you know, they managed to open the gates. The police just running to there. They cleared the station and they closed it, and that's it. So I said, let me get the bus to get to (INAUDIBLE). The bus (INAUDIBLE), and it stops, so I have to make all the way, you know, go around the area to get into the office. I'm a bit late today.
QUESTION: Was the reaction of all the passengers around you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, everyone was surprised, shocked. All the ladies that I've seen there, they were kind of just basically crying. They didn't know what was going on. And obviously, the police tried to clear the station, and it was chaotic. Everyone -- the buses were just, you know, standing in the middle of the road. They didn't know where to go, and everyone just came off the buses and just move.
QUESTION: Can we just ask you your name, please?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The name is Mustafa Zurich (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'BRIEN: All right, and that particular person has a pretty good excuse if he was late. I think he'll be OK with his boss.
As we speak now, the police are continuing a fairly significant forensic investigation and perhaps a pursuit of other suspects, because we're told there's an ongoing operation, and that has delayed this briefing in the wake of what we saw unfold at the Stockwell subway station. Police have cordoned off the streets there, and we're told witnesses were actually take ton a nearby veterinarian clinic, probably just because that was a convenient place to do it, to be interrogated by authorities. Two things they're curious about. Of course they want to know a little bit about the suspect involved, but also this was an unusual thing in Great Britain, the use deadly force, very unusual. So there is an ongoing investigation into that, because those things are so rare and so scrupulously investigated.
CNN's Nic Robertson is on the scene there. And, Nic, you know, we've been talking a little how rare it is to have deadly force used in Great Britain. For an American audience, it's worth reminding them most officers, bobbies, as they call them there, are not even armed.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's correct. It's abnormal, very abnormal for police to be armed. There are a small number of armed police who are out on the streets. Obviously they are trained in the use of weapons and in the use of deadly force with those weapons, but the vast majority of police that on the streets here, and indeed more police have been on the streets of London since the attacks began two weeks ago. They've been traveling in pairs, often wearing fluorescent jackets, again, high visibility, showing the people they're out on the streets, showing them that the streets are safe.
But again, those vast majority of police, not armed. What I would like to do, Miles, just try and get more insights on what happened here today, and more reaction from the community.
I'm joined by Toaha Qureshi.
Mr. Qureshi, you're the trustee of the Stockwell Mosque here. What you do know? What have you been told by police about the events that have unfolded?
TOAHA QURESHI, TRUSTEE, STOCKWELL MOSQUE: Well, we have been told just one person has been shot dead. It's believed that he's from Pakistan, and he's Muslim. But what we would like to say from Stockwell Mosque, at the (INAUDIBLE) community, that, please, stay calm, work with the community at large, bring peace in the community; as far as Islam is concerned, there is no room for terrorists. Fight together to combat this challenge of terror.
ROBERTSON: Was the man who was shot today? Is he known to you? Was he known to the community here?
QURESHI: No, his identity has not been disclosed yet, so we don't know who that person is.
ROBERTSON: Are you aware of a radical undercurrent among some of the Muslim youth here, that this man could have been a part of? That he may have been from this area?
QURESHI: Well, let's be clear. This problem has been growing among the community, and that was identified by the Muslim community, and the Muslim community has been working in partnership with the local communities, as well as the local authorities and Metropolitan Police to combat this challenge, but we were not aware of any particular individual who has been involved in any act of terrorism.
ROBERTSON: Have people in the community talked to be about this shooting yet? In particular, obviously a man an South Asian origin shot dead by police? Have people talked to you? Have they expressed concern? What did they talk to you about?
QURESHI: Yes, particularly the young people, they seem to be very angry, why that man was shot dead? Why not shot in the leg? So yes, they are angry, and they are anxious to find out who that person was and what were the circumstances he was shot dead, and he was shot five times in his head.
ROBERTSON: When you talk to the young people here, what are you telling them about this? What are you trying to explain to them?
QURESHI: What we are trying to explain to the young Muslims is that those people who are engaged in this type of activities, they have got nothing to doing with Islam, so do not get engaged with them. That is one thing. But there is a message for the government of as well, you see, that they ought to have a long-term strategy in place where they're numerous diversionary programs to engage young Muslims into various constructive and productive activities.
ROBERTSON: And to the police, what would you be telling the police in terms of dealing with the community here, at this time after this particular event?
QURESHI: Police in Lambert (ph) have been in touch with the Muslim community, particularly myself. There is no ambiguity at this moment. There's a very clear-cut communication.
ROBERTSON: Mr. Qureshi, thank you much indeed for joining us.
QURESHI: You're welcome.
ROBERTSON: Miles, clearly concern within the community. Clearly the message from the Muslim community here that the people behind the attacks, and we've heard this many, many times in Britain, the people behind the attacks are young Muslims, behind the attacks that we have seen, not part of working outside of Islam, if you will, not part of the community -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: And what you hear in Mr. Qureshi's voice, Nic, is a sense of real frustration that this is happening in their midst, and that certain mosques, and not necessarily his, of course, have really become a nexus of getting people -- well, they basically conflate and confuse them about the Koran and what its teachings are. And I wonder if there is a bit of growing backlash within the Muslim community there?
ROBERTSON: I think it's not just here, Miles. It's something that I'm noticing not just here in London, but in talking to community leaders in Saudi Arabia, in Jordan, in Iraq, that there is a generational issue that the younger generation that has become, perhaps, disconnected with their parents' cultures and values, there's perhaps disassociated and disaffected from the community around them that they feel is perhaps biased against them being young, against them being Muslims, that they have been angered by what they see happening in Iraq and how they perceive Muslims being dealt with in Iraq and in Afghanistan.
That has played into a generational issue, whereby community leaders and, indeed some leaders, very radical leaders, that either governments like Saudi Arabia or communities in Britain have expected and relied ton curtail the activities of these youth with their own very radical message, are not connecting with the young youth who are, by the nature of their youth, they're angry about what they see and want action immediately. This is something that we've heard from insurgents in Iraq, that they would rather join the firebrands, the Zarqawis, commit suicide attacks there because they are so angry.
There is a division within the community itself, a generational gap, not just here, obviously this problem here, and we've heard that in Leeds in the north of London, the elder community out of touch with the younger community. The parents there very worried about what their children are doing -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: Well, you know, Nic, it's one thing to be young and angry -- I think we've all been through that stage in our lives -- but it's another to be young, angry and devoid all hope, to have that sense of desperation, and that's something that the Muslim community really needs to reckon with, and for that matter, all of us.
ROBERTSON: And I think that's something that, certainly the Muslim leaders I've talked to, they're very aware of it. They're not particularly sure how to deal with it. They haven't done it before. They know it's something they need to do, and I think, Miles, there's another element plays into this as well, that young people across all sections, of all societies, can find out what information they want about whatever it is they want on Internet, that they don't have to rely on their leaders, community leaders as they might have done in the past, that they can pick up extremist views by tapping in the Web site address of any of these radical groups, and there have been radical groups, Al Majorun (ph) in Britain, for example. There are plenty of Web sites that can provide very radical, very angry information that will inspire young men to go out and get involved in violent conflict.
So it is beyond the communities as well. This is the that picture emerging not just here, but in other countries -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: Good point, Nic.
I heard somebody say the other day that today's Afghanistan, if you will, is the Internet, and that is something that really has to be reckoned with, one way or the other.
Nic Robertson, thank you very much for your insights, sir -- Carol. COSTELLO: Here in our country, the FBI is sending for agents to London, and poring over intelligence already gathered. They're searching for Haroon Rashid Aswat, a man wanted in connection with the July 7th London bombings. U.S. authorities have known about him since 1999 when they investigated an attempt to set up a terrorist training camp in Oregon.
Rusty Dornin picks up the story from there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There are a web of connections between the London attacks, the Dar-es Salaam Mosque in Seattle and this desolate ranch in Bly, Oregon.
We start with this man. He was born in Seattle, as James Ernest Thompson. When he quest converted to Islam he changed his name to James Ujaama. He attended the mosque on Union Street, which has since been torn down.
But in July, 2002, he was arrested for terrorist activities and later pleaded guilty to conspiring to support the Taliban in Afghanistan. U.S. authorities say he didn't work alone. That he had, in the technical jargon of court papers, three "unindicted coconspirators."
Of the three men, who were not named in the documents, investigators say it is coconspirator number three who is now getting attention from British authorities in connection with the London attacks.
(on camera): Officials familiar with both the London investigation and the Ujaama case say his name is Haroon Rashid Aswat and that he provided some type of support to the now-dead London bombers and left Britain just days before the attacks.
(voice-over): What is he alleged to have done in the U.S.? The court documents say he traveled here to Bly, Oregon, to help set up a terrorist training camp. In 1999, while visiting the potential camp along with Ujaama and others to work up a security plan, according to the court documents, Aswat interviewed potential candidates for jihad training and participated in firearms training. All of this allegedly went on right under the nose of their neighbors.
CHESTER BROWN, BLY, OREGON RESIDENT: If it was happening, I'd know it. I live across from that ranch. If there was any automatic fire out there. We'd have heard it right here in the center of town.
DORNIN: The court documents allege Aswat went to Seattle in 2000 where he quote, "expounded on the writings and teaching of radical British cleric Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Masri." Ujaama, meanwhile, went to London to work on Abu Hamza's Web site. Abu Hamza is now jailed in London and wanted by U.S. authorities to stand trial on terrorism charges.
So where is Haroon Rashid Aswat, the man who went to Oregon to set up the terror camp? Officials with knowledge of the London investigation say before his latest visit to Britain, he was last known to be in South Africa, and now there's a worldwide manhunt for him.
Rusty Dornin, CNN, Seattle, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
O'BRIEN: A worldwide manhunt that many U.S. officials believe Aswat had been killed in Afghanistan, until his name surfaced in the London case. Stay tuned to CNN for the most reliable news about your security.
We are still awaiting a news conference from London, investigators, London police. That will take place, we hope, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time, and hopefully we'll get a glimpse for the first time of the suspects linked to those bombings in London yesterday.
We'll be right back with much more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: You know, this morning we had reporters fanned all over the place, just to gauge the reaction of commuters in London, to see if they were going to get on to the subway trains and ride their -- you know, on their way to lunch, or wherever they were going as normal, and then this happened in the Stockwell Station in London.
O'BRIEN: Certainly changed the tone of what was already kind of a tense commute, I think. People showed up, they went to work. But some initial reports are, few of them showed up. Of course, it is Friday in the middle of the summer and perhaps there are other reasons why they weren't there.
COSTELLO: But word is spreading that a man was shot inside the Stockwell Station by police, a man possibly connected to the bombings yesterday.
Jennifer Eccleston is at the Oxford Circus Tube. Jennifer, what are people saying now this morning?
JENNIFER ECCLESTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, as Miles just pointed out, it was already a stressful commute, given the -- what happened yesterday, the events of yesterday in three tube stations and also on a bus. But I must say that when the word came down at about 10:00 a.m. local time that there had been that shooting at the Stockwell Station -- which is on the Northern Line, one of the main thoroughfares, main tube stations here in London -- and the people we talked to were definitely a little more unnerved.
I mean, already this morning, we've seen a decreased number of commuters coming into town from outside of London and into the center of the city. Those we spoke to that did manage to come in said that it was very stressful. They were constantly looking around them. They weren't able to relax as much as usual, to read their papers, go about think daily business during their daily commute. It was definitely heightened tension, especially for those on tubes where people came in with backpacks or with bags, everybody looking at them, asking the passenger if that bag belonged to them.
But they were also heartened to see a great number of police in and around tube stations throughout London. An increased police presence, certainly here at Oxford Circus. But it's not just those who live in London, those who commute every day, that are feeling a little anxious. It's the thousands of tourists that come to this city, one of the most popular in the world. It's a very multicultural city, multiethnic city.
And I'm going to speak to right now a young woman who was originally from Lithuania. She's now been living in London the past two years. And you are a commuter. What was the sense today?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, you don't feel that comfortable anymore. You know, we got on a bus with my sister on the second floor, and first of all, I looked around. If there's, you know, any people. You look at everybody suspicious. You get on the tube and sometimes I have, like, a feeling that if I find something suspicious, I better get off, you know, of the tube or change the carriage. You just don't feel safe anymore.
But, you know, I don't want to change my life. You know, my sister came to visit me for couple days. We don't want to sit at home, watch telly and be scared. We want to go around, you know, see places. So -- I guess a sense of security is just gone.
ECCLESTON: What about the police presence? I'm sure you've noticed that there's been a great many more police and security officials throughout the transport system. Does that provide comfort to you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In a way, it has, but, you know, they are, like, normal people. If he's in the same carriage with me and the bomb explodes, he doesn't -- can't, you know, like, do anything. Well, in a way maybe you feel more secure, because he's wearing uniform and he knows what's to do. But on the other hand, you never know what can happen. So you just have to be aware, and -- I don't know.
ECCLESTON: Would you ever have expected that moving to London, one really of the most safe cities in the world, that you would have this issue?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not really. And I already know people that now are moving from London. They are going back to their countries, or -- you know, every day I get messages from my parents, my friends from all over the world. How are you? Is everybody OK? You know, I don't want to get these messages. It's just upsetting, scary and -- you don't want to live in a place like that. But I'm not planning to move. I really like London. I love London.
ECCLESTON: Well, thank you very much. There you have it. Yet again, we've been speaking to people all morning long for the past nine hours. Those that live in London, those that are native Londoners, those who are visiting and those here for a short period of time. And, as she noted, while there is this increased tension, while there is this fear, and while there is this unfortunate feeling now that people have to be constantly on guard, there is a great deal of commitment to this city. One of the biggest multicultural centers in the world. And everybody is just pulling for it and hoping that things will soon return to normal -- Miles.
COSTELLO: Well, it's back to me, Jennifer, but many Americans feel the same way. Jennifer Eccleston, live in London this morning.
O'BRIEN: Well, kind of a tense commute here in the U.S. as well. Americans dealing with a different kind of commute, in many respects. We've got coverage from three key locations, where there's some heavy use of mass transit. New York City, Allan Chernoff; Boston, Dan Lothian; Washington, D.C., Kimberly Osias. That represents several million people going to and from work on mass transit.
First let's start in New York City. Allan Chernoff. 72nd and Broadway. Allan, unprecedented this morning. Authorities there asking people to open their bags.
ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Although it is happening only at selected stations. Here at 72nd and Broadway, there have been three police officers on duty. But as far as we've seen, they've yet to check a single bag. They tell us their assignment today is only to be on patrol, but not to actually check bags. Of course, at other stations around town, the police have been looking through bags. They say they're doing it randomly. They emphasize there is no racial profiling going on here.
We've been checking with the New Yorkers, in terms of how they feel about this bag checking. The vast majority tell us they're very much in favor of it. They feel safer. But there are some who are opposed. They feel that they're simply having their rights violated here. And they simply say, this is something that they need to have the police officers be very careful about. But as I said, the majority are in favor of the new policy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It makes you feel like at least there's some obstacle to any potential threat.
CHERNOFF: So they don't bother you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, they don't bother me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is jut politics. This is Bloomberg just trying to make himself -- you know, to basically prey on that's going around, because what's going on in London right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHERNOFF: Also, very important to note. We cannot detect any increase in fear among the people using the subway today. New Yorkers are certainly a very hearty bunch, very much used to keeping their eyes out. I mean, the subway has never been considered to be a safe place. Even growing up in the '70s, this was a place -- the subway -- where people had to keep their eye out for muggers. So now they keep their eyes out for packages, for anything suspicious.
Unfortunately, this is something that New Yorkers have had to live with. And now there's a higher level of security, a higher level of awareness. But certainly, it seems the majority of New Yorkers are very happy to see the police out in force -- Miles.
O'BRIEN: Well, and the media, too. A higher level of media presence as well, as we see with Allan Chernoff there. Before we get to Dan Lothian in Boston and ultimately Kimberly Osias, a little bit of news to share with you.
This is coming from British broadcast reports out of Great Britain. They're saying that armed police have descended upon a residence in Harrow Road, which is in the western part of London. And there are reports from witnesses on the scene that remote-controlled vehicles, typically used by the bomb squad there, are being deployed at that location. Armored vehicles of some kind, several armed officers around.
And we are indicating -- we have gotten some reports from Independent Television News that there might have been an arrest made at this location. Once again, sketchy information. Not able to connect everything just yet, but we are expecting a police briefing shortly. If you'll recall, when we talked to our investigative producer, Henry Schuster (ph), who's at that briefing location, he said they're delaying it because of ongoing operations. Perhaps this West London operation that we're talking about right now could be just that.
Back to the morning commute in the United States of America. Dan Lothian in Boston, where I'm not sure they're actually opening up bags there this morning. Are they, Dan? What are they doing? What is the added security that is being layered on this morning?
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miles, we are at the Government Center, one of the key stops in downtown Boston. They are not doing those random bag searches. However, law enforcement officials saying that they will search anyone if they are carrying something that appears to be suspicious or they're acting in sort of suspicious manner.
They are, right now, under what the head of the Transit Authority calls a orange alert plus. that means is that they've beefed up security in and around the subway stations this morning. We saw one transit officer doing a patrol with a dog. Earlier, CNN had a chance to some of the commuters who are arriving here at this station. Here's what some of them had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm concerned, but I have to get where I have to go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have a lot of confidence in the security here, but it's always a possibility that something can happen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I try to avoid the rush hour as much as I can. Go a little before or a little after. I figure if something's going to happen, it's going to happen during rush hour.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LOTHIAN: Now the campaign that was started some two weeks ago after the initial bombings continues. That is see something, say something. Officials encouraging folks if they see anything suspicious, to call police.
Miles.
O'BRIEN: That's CNN's Dan Lothian in Boston. And we were going it head down to Washington and Kimberly Osias, but . . .
COSTELLO: Our trip will have to wait.
O'BRIEN: I think we're getting off at this station, so to speak.
Thank you for being with us all this morning as we've been covering these breaking developments out of London.
COSTELLO: Yes. We're going to join Tony Harris now in Atlanta.
Take it away, Tony.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: OK, Carol and Miles, thank you very much.
And good morning, everyone. I am Tony Harris, sitting in for Daryn Kagan, and this is CNN LIVE TODAY.
At any moment Scotland Yard is due to hold a news conference and reveal more information on this morning's police shooting at a London subway station. It took place one stop away from a station that was targeted in yesterday's attacks. London media are reporting the man who was shot and killed was believed to be connected to those bombings. British authorities have not yet confirmed or denied those claims. Scotland Yard is saying, however, that surveillance cameras helped identify four suspects in yesterday's attacks.
And "Now in the News."
New security concerns in London following yesterday's attempted bombings. Plain clothes police shot and killed a man this morning as he tried to board a subway train. Witnesses say the man wasn't carrying a backpack but was carrying and wearing a thick coat. Some subway lines and stations remain closed after today's shooting and Thursday's incidents.
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There's a new twist it the CIA leak probe story. Sources say a classified State Department memo mentioned the outed CIA Operative Valerie Plame. The reference in the secret marked paragraph didn't say Plame was undercover or had a protected identity. Bush administration officials have been questioned about the memo in grand jury proceedings.
Lightning ignited this fire in Northern Utah last night. Take a look. The fire threatened houses and prompted some temporary evacuations. But firefighters were able to contain the blaze with little structural damage. Hot and dry conditions in the west are keeping fire crews on alert.
CNN staffers are fanning out this morning covering the many angles of this developing story out London. CNN Producer Henry Schuster is at the news conference awaiting for its beginning, for it to actually begin, and he has new information for us. Henry joins us by the phone this morning.
Henry, what can you tell us?
HENRY SCHUSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, I can tell you that police say they have made a definite identification of four men involved in yesterday's attacks. They made these through CC-TV pictures at the various tube stations and on the bus that were attacked. They say that when I asked them, can you say the man who was shot this morning at the Stockwell Station was one of those men? They said, well, we certainly hope so but we cannot definitively say that at that point.
They delay this news conference because of what of they said ongoing operational activities. They said that the focus of their operations is here in the city of London. And we're just awaiting word.
HARRIS: OK.
SCHUSTER: It may be within the next half hour. They have not said anything yet about the Harrow Road . . .
HARRIS: Nothing. All right.
Well, let's sort of bring our viewers up to date on the Harrow Road situation.
My understanding, Henry, is that there has been some kind of police response to Harrow Road and that is a residential neighborhood, as I understand it, in London. Is that correct?
SCHUSTER: It's in Northwest London, yes.
HARRIS: In Northwest London.
SCHUSTER: And there appears to be heavy police activity there, including cordoning off the streets, bringing in armed men and also bomb squad activity.
HARRIS: OK. And we're not able to confirm whether or not anyone has been arrested at that location at this time?
SCHUSTER: No. We are not able to confirm that, nor are we able to confirm that that is, in fact, linked to this. But I think if you put together the fact that they've delayed this news conference and said it was because of operational activity and that events were very fast-moving, that we hope that we'll gelt more information when this news conference is actually held.
HARRIS: OK. And this news conference is being held is am I correct here, the QE2 Center? Is that correct?
SCHUSTER: Yes. Which is right in Central London.
HARRIS: All right. And we're waiting to hear from Metropolitan Police Commissioner Ian Blair, among others, correct?
SCHUSTER: Yes. Ian Blair. And we'll also hear from the assistant commissioner, Andy Heyman, who's in charge of specialist operations. Obviously his men would be the men who would have been involved this morning at the tube station.
HARRIS: OK. Henry, give us a heads up when that news conference looks like it's about to begin.
SCHUSTER: Absolutely. I'll let you know. And we hope the news conference will be within this hour, but oh, now we're hearing, yes. We just heard that the news conference is now schedule for 3:30 local time, 10:30 your time.
HARRIS: OK. Great, Henry. Thank you. Appreciate it.
Is this how we must live now? That's the newspaper headline that greeted London commuters this morning even before the latest bazar incident. About five hours ago, police, as we've been telling you, chased a man on to a subway train in South London, then shot and killed him, as panicked riders scrambled to get away. Joining us from near the Stockwell Station where the shooting took place is CNN Senior International Correspondent Nic Robertson.
Nic, if you would, sort of take us back and reset this scene for us.
ROBERTSON: Well, Tony, the calls first came in around about 10:00, 10:30 this morning. Eyewitnesses say they saw three plain- clothes policemen, one of them armed with a handgun, chase a young man of South Asian origin, which here in Britain would tend to mean of Pakistani, of Indian, of Bangladeshi descent, chased him over the ticket barrier, down onto a train that was standing in the station. They say as the man entered the station, he entered the train, he tripped up and fell. The police, according to some of the witnesses, they say they helped push the man to the ground.
All the witnesses, however, say that the man was then shot by the police. The police have pronounced him dead. The police have linked him now to the attacks yesterday. This station is just one tube line stop away from the Oval Station, which is the location of one of the attacks yesterday.
The other details about what's going on here, the police haven't released, but we do know that the police have brought in an incident's unit here. We've seen several ambulances come and go from the scene. We also understand that the police have set up a control point in a veterinary surgery here very close to the station where they are interviewing witnesses. We know that this is something that they did following the attacks yesterday. This, and a security camera video, helped lead to the identification of those four men behind attacks yesterday.
Tony.
HARRIS: Nic, we understand that this young man who was shot and killed was wearing, what we've been told, is a large, a heavy coat. Was there anything else to lead authorities to believe that this man might have been carrying some kind of an explosive?
ROBERTSON: Well, I think when we look and try and examine all of the things that have happened, one of the eyewitnesses did say that the man was wearing a heavy coat. We also know that the armed police were at this station. That, in itself, is unusual. An indication that perhaps the police were expecting the man to come to this station. That perhaps they had followed him from somewhere else.
So why did they choose to shoot him? Perhaps because they suspected that his heavy coat may conceal a suicide bomber's vest. The two attack, two sets of attacks yesterday, and two weeks ago, have been by bombers who carried their packs on their backs. In the first bombing, all of the bombers died. Yesterday, the bombers escaped. The police here very concerned that they might be dealing with suicide bombers. Were likely been concerned that this man may have been a suicide may have been on a suicide bombing mission, wearing a bomber's jacket.
But, again, when you look at all of the information here, Tony, and you try and piece it together, that the police were so close to this man and decided to vaguely shoot him, yet apparently knowing that he was one of their suspect and that he could have provided other valuable information potentially about who was behind the attacks, about who was the support infrastructure behind the attacks. They shot to kill and kill him as an indication of how seriously they believed the threat that he posed to the people immediately around him was.
Tony.
HARRIS: OK. Nic Robertson following the story. Maybe we'll get those answers in that 10:30 briefing from Scotland Yard.
And we want to update you know take a moment and update the situation at Harrow Road. We understand it to be a residential area. On Harrow Road, the street in Middle London, where we understand that there is a lot of police activity ongoing right now. We even understand that a premises on Harrow Road is actually being searched in connection to yesterday's bombings, or bomb attempts, in London, on the subway tube stations, and also on that double-decker bus.
So right now, the situation at Harrow Road appears to be tense as police have closed off, we understand, the road and that they are searching a home there. We'll get more questions and more answers during that briefing at 10:30. We understand that we do have some eyewitness sounds of the activity at that Harrow Road location.
Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LANA KOVA, SPEAKING FROM W LONDON: (INAUDIBLE) is sill cordoned. There is (INAUDIBLE) police here outside. They're not letting people cross Harrow Road. And well earlier I saw a woman outside. She crawled from a shop with her hands on the wall and then I saw her being escorted to the police one (ph). They there was lots of people outside here but everybody seems to be nice and calm.
ASSAM KANSO, HARROW ROAD WITNESS: I heard from one of the customer. He says they saw two arrested people. And after that, I have one other customer says is that (INAUDIBLE) the armed police surrounding a bus. So near the cafe. And after that, they arresting these two people. One man and one woman, as they're saying.
DWAYNE LIONEL, HARROW ROAD WITNESS: Our police are not saying anything but the road's the main road's calmed down but I know that a couple roads off the main road abrupt (INAUDIBLE) police were down there. So . . .
ANGELA DOAKYE, HARROW ROAD WITNESS: All I know is that when it happened, it was like a loud scream. And then when I heard the loud scream, I thought it was like you know, normally, on Harrow Road, there's a lot of commotion (INAUDIBLE) Lafi (ph) Inn (ph) and all kinds stuff. But then when it was louder (INAUDIBLE) this looks this I was really terrified and I couldn't see what's happening. And then all I know is that there was police flying left, right, and front (ph) was guarding some stuff and said not to get (INAUDIBLE) on the road.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: So what we have at Harrow Road in Middle London a lot, as you can hear from witness account, a lot of police activity. Those witness accounts being provided to us by the ITV Network.
A lot of activity on Harrow Road. We understand that the street has been closed off. Police personnel all over that stretch of road there, as you can tell from the witness accounts. That is a pretty busy stretch of road there, but it has been cordoned off. Is a residential neighborhood.
Once again, at 10:30, approximately 10:30 this morning Eastern Time, we expect to get answers to a lot of questions and certainly an update on the situation at Harrow Road, what exactly is going on there. I think you heard in one of the eyewitness accounts that there were at least two people pulled out of one of the residences. We'll try to tie all of those ends together.
This is the QE2 Center in London and we're awaiting a briefing from Scotland Yard. It's expected to happen at about 10:30 Eastern Time this morning. And, of course, when it does happen, we will take you there live.
Londoners return to their commutes this morning vowing defiance in the face of yesterday's attack. But what about now in light of the mid morning police shootings? CNN's Paula Hancocks has been talking to London commuters.
Paula.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Tony.
Well, the streets of London are starting to fill up a little this afternoon but we're nowhere near the sort of crowds that we would usually see. It's a Friday afternoon. It's a fairly warm day and the sales are on, so usually it would be mobbed along Oxford Street. This is the main shopping street here in London.
It is a little bit quieter. There's been all morning the sense that some people have been working from home. Some people, just as they did two weeks ago, have decided to maybe just take a long weekend and take the Friday off.
Also, we're seeing a bit of a difference in the way people are getting to work. There was a lot more people walking this morning. A lot more people taking bicycles. But there are still the hard core Londoners who are saying that they are going to take the tube. They're coming off the tube stations and they're saying that they're quite heartened by the fact they are seeing a huge police presence. Police presence below ground and also they are milling around above ground as well. They're saying that that is helping to put their minds at ease a little bit, even though they know that there's not necessarily 100 percent chance of them actually being able to secure them. But just the fact that in some of these tube stations they've been stopping people with racksacks (ph), looking through racksacks (ph), all these sort of things to build confidence in the London commuters.
But, of course, the more things we hear throughout the day, the more the public confidence is going to be chipped away. As many psychologists say, you can get over one shock. You can get over even maybe two shocks. But when you continue to have these shocks and the bomb threats and then these incidents, for example, at Stockwell this morning when that man was shot, this just does chip away at public confidence. And there are people who are saying they're more nervous on the tube, inevitably.
They look around more. They're looking at people with rackpacks (ph) more and they're more vigilant. But in that case, the police are saying that the public can also be their eyes. And if they do see anything that they consider suspicious, they obviously should alert the police immediately.
Tony.
HARRIS: And, Paula, if folks are looking around a little bit more, being more conscious of their surroundings, for the authorities there in London, that has to be considered a good thing, a good development.
HANCOCKS: Well, that's exactly what they've actually wanted the public to do all along. And that, to a certain extent, they have been, especially since two weeks ago. They have become a lot more vigilant. And if there is a bag that's left on a tube or if there is a bag that's left on a bus, people will do more about it. Londoners who, in the past, may not have even thought twice about it, maybe (INAUDIBLE) complacent, are certainty not going to be that way now. Many people are saying that they do look at who they're sitting next to. It's more of a suspicion around Londoners at the moment. But inevitably, that's what the police want, because they want the people to be there eyes because the people are everywhere and they can't be.
Tony.
HARRIS: Sure. Paula Hancocks in London.
Paula, thank you.
The London blasts are reverberating in the United States. Officials here say U.S. transit will remain on orange alert, as it has been since the first attacks two weeks ago. We have two views of rail security in the United States. CNN's Kimberly Osias is at Washington's Union Station and Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff is in New York.
And, Allan, let's begin with you.
CHERNOFF: Tony, there have been three police officers on duet here at 72nd Street and Broadway on Manhattan's upper west side. But as far as we've seen, they have not checked any bags whatsoever. They tell us that's actually not their assignment today. Their assignment is merely to be on patrol here in Manhattan on the upper west side, checking the subway station.
Now, many New Yorkers are pretty much taking this in stride. Let's remember, after 9/11, New Yorkers recognized we are living in a different, much more dangerous world. Security is far tied at office building and apartment buildings, going to Yankee Stadium or Shea Stadium, the ballpark, bags are routinely checked there, as they are at Madison Square Garden. So almost having bags checked at the subway is nearly a next step for many New Yorkers.
The vast majority tell us they are very much in favor. Some are opposed, saying that their civil rights, they feel, are being violated. But the police commissioner says this is something New Yorkers are going to have to put up with.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RAYMOND KELLY, NY POLICE COMMISSIONER: Well, there are a lot of challenges in protecting mass transit. Just the very definition of mass transit means you move a lot of people quickly. So, you know, people are it's not like an airport where you can control it much more readily. So there are a lot of challenges there. When you say a holistic approach, some people say that's kind of backing off. That we haven't done enough for mass transit. I think this is a reasonable step to take.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHERNOFF: Among those challenges, the simple fact that there are 468 different subway stations in New York City. The nation's largest transit system here. Of course, the police cannot patrol every single station. So checking the bags, that's only being done at selected stations. They're not going to be announcing every day where they'll be checking those bags. It's a random show of force. That's what the police are trying to accomplish here and many New Yorkers telling us they appreciate it.
Tony.
HARRIS: Allan Chernoff in New York.
Allan, thank you.
Now let's go to Washington's rail hub, Union Station. CNN's Kimberly Osias is there.
Kimberly, good morning.
KIMBERLY OSIAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And good morning to you, Tony.
Well, this is, obviously, a very bustling area right in the center of the district. Alert level here is, in fact, high. It remains at orange. We are not allowed inside because of increased security reasons with our cameras. However, I went inside myself and over the PA system you hear continual reminders of the fact that we are at this heightened alert. High, right under the red level. Reminding the public to be extra vigilant.
You see the presence of a number of police officers. Some carries machine guns. Some people saying that it, in fact, made them feel much more secure on their regular morning commute and others saying it was a big disconcerting. There are no random searches being done here, like in New York. However, officials say they will be keeping an eye on New York and may implement that at a later juncture.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unless they check every single bag that comes through, you're not going to have any sort of increased safety. There's not going to be any more efficacious it's going to be random checks. You're going to get lucky or either unlucky. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel that would be kind of inappropriate. An invasion of privacy. If you keep a weary eye out, that should be sufficient.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OSIAS: A little sampling of what people are feeling with regard to possible random searches occurring here.
Now just last night metro authorities took the unique step of ratcheting up security by having bomb-sniffing dogs. They did a full sweep. They actually shut down the metros for a period of time and police there as well.
And just to give you an idea of numbers, Tony, the metro system here in Washington is second only in volume to New York City with some 700,000 passengers traveling through each and every day.
Tony.
HARRIS: Wow, a huge system. Kimberly Osias, Washington, Union Station.
Kimberly, thank you.
Fifteen days after the first London bombings, two American sisters are leaving the hospital. Katie and Emily Benton were only 10 feet away from one of the four bombs that exploded in the July 7th attacks. The blast tore apart their subway car and killed the woman sitting right next to them. They're undergoing treatment at Duke University Medical Center in New York. I'm sorry, in North Carolina. Live pictures up now. Let's listen in.
EMILY BENTON: You know, to look at other people. Some people were fine and they were up walking around. And there was the woman who sat next to Katie actually passed away. But and there were other, you know, people who were severely injured more than we were. So it was just . . .
KATIE BENTON: I suppose we should also mentions, that I think we forgot to yesterday . . .
EMILY BENTON: Yes.
KATIE BENTON: We did see a lot of devastation, but at the same time, the fellow passengers on the train that were uninjured and also the passengers on the train directly next to us, like at one point they broke the glass in the train to get out of their train and into ours to help us. Like, they were absolutely phenomenal. I really don't know how we would have made it through without the help from some of the other passengers on the train. So there were water bottles coming from everywhere! There was so much water available for us!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Next question.
QUESTION: Katie, I understand after talking with your mom earlier, that you're keeping a journal on tape.
KATIE BENTON: Uh-huh.
QUESTION: Tell about that and why you wanted to do that and how many tapes you've done so far.
KATIE BENTON: Well, one, because the tape ran out. I am keeping a journal, a, because I could not write at first and I'm a very obsessive, compulsive journaler anyway. So anything major that happen, I like to have it written down. But I am keenly interested on writing a book about this when all of it is said and done and I did not want to forget any details or forget what I had gone through, the process, the emotional, as well as the physical, throughout this whole ordeal. And also what the Lord has shown me since every time every morning when I wake up and open up the Bible, he just has revealed some new word of encouragement. Something it's just been incredible. And, yeah. So hopefully I will either get some serious help in writing it, or I will be able to write that book. I'm planning on doing it this year. So . . .
QUESTION: Hi. Erica Millen (ph) from the News (INAUDIBLE). And you guys look great. I wanted to just ask you, I know both of you are very active in your church and how have you made sense of this all? I mean, do you think that there was some reason you were on that train or was it just random?
EMILY BENTON: I'm not even sure we were on the right train to begin with. So we were kind of lost. So we've a . . .
KATIE BENTON: There's definitely a reason for us being on that train. And there has not been, again, there's not been one minute that I said, I wonder if the Lord was out of control in all of this? I have seen his hand in every single step of it. It is there's been no doubt in my mind that he prepared our entire family for this. That we just I mean so many random events happened that morning that ensured that we got on that train and I have already seen we've all already seen . . .
HARRIS: You've been listening to the Benton sisters from Knoxville, Tennessee, as they speak at a press conference. Just hours, I would imagine, from leaving the hospital today. They survived the attacks in London two weeks ago but suffered, you can see there, some pretty major injuries. Broken bones, ear drum damage. The sisters needed several skin grafts. You heard Katie talking about her plans to write a book and chronicle the ordeal.
I want to remind you that Carol Costello actually had an opportunity to sit down with both the sisters, Emily and Katie, and we will run that story for you in the 11:00 hour.
But coming up in just a couple of minutes, at about 10:30, there's or about, we're expecting a news conference where we'll get the latest on the investigation of the London bombings. That's coming up about 10:30. More CNN LIVE TODAY in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HARRIS: Now a closer look at the London terror attacks and their ripple across the ocean to the United States. CNN Security Analyst Richard Falkenrath served as an adviser to the White House on homeland security issues. He joins us now from Washington, D.C.
Richard, good to talk to you.
RICHARD FALKENRATH, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Good morning, Tony.
HARRIS: The bombs go off two weeks ago. The detonators at least we know went off yesterday in London. And at that moment, police are reacting to what is going on, on the ground. Is there a sense at all that you have that perhaps there was a way to get ahead of this? That perhaps there was a way to prevent what happened two weeks ago and maybe even yesterday?
FALKENRATH: Well, we don't know that yet. We don't know if this set of bombers is connected to the previous one. It they are, in fact, connected, then the answer to your question is, yes. The fact that the bombing occurred two weeks ago should have led investigators to the co-conspirator. But we don't know that yet.
What we do know is that right now is a very dangerous time in London. If the initial reports are right, and this is a fast- developing story so there might be new facts coming out, if they were right and London police were following one of the bombers, they were probably following to find out who the other three were.
HARRIS: Yes.
FALKENRATH: And if they shot him, that's on television now. The other three know he's been shot and it's possible that they will try to carry out their attacks imminently. So this is a very dangerous time in London.
HARRIS: Hey, Richard, do you have to work, or at least a team has to work under the assumption that the two attacks are linked? Or is it dangerous to do that?
FALKENRATH: Well, as investigators, you want to keep your minds open to both possibilities. It stands to reason that they are linked. But if you're looking in to this from the counterterrorism side, you need to assume it could be either one, not close your mind to either possibility.
HARRIS: Richard, I hate to sort of suggest a political look at this, but let's take a look at it for just a moment. If you're Tony Blair right now, you put forth a very brave front two weeks ago and now you get yesterday's incident and all of the activity that we see happening today, at some point, you know, that stiff upper lip begins to quiver a bit and there probably is some criticism for Tony Blair to come down the road if the government doesn't appear to be on top of this.
FALKENRATH: Well, you're right, Tony. This has been a tough two weeks for Tony Blair and the attack yesterday really, I think, is a blow it him personally, to his administration and to the British public's confidence in that security service. It's been there were indications that maybe some of the plotters two weeks ago were known about in advance and were deem not a threat and carried out the attack. That's your worst nightmare if you're in the security business.
They lower the threat level right before the attack. Also not good. There are criticisms, I think unfounded, but there are criticisms that the attack is related to his Iraq policy. That is swirling around in London.
HARRIS: Why do you think that's unfounded?
FALKENRATH: Oh, I see no evidence for that. These attacks pre- date the invasion of Iraq by many years. Al Qaeda was alive and kicking well before the United States or the United Kingdom went into Iraq, and these appear to be South Asians, based in Pakistan in part, not Arabs from Iraq or Saudi Arabia. And they've really got a different motivation. So he's got to deal with that criticism politically.
My personal feeling, like the prime minister of Australia, who stood beside him yesterday and said same thing, is these are unrelated.
HARRIS: I see. If you're the U.K. and you're moving forward from where we are today, what do you do differently, if anything? My goodness, it seems the whole city is wired with television cameras?
FALKENRATH: Yes. The television cameras are very useful for investigating these attacks when they occur, and as yesterday, the individuals are still at large, the television cameras are critical for getting pictures of the people.
HARRIS: And, Richard, let's leave it there for now. We see that the press conference at the QE2 Center in London is about to begin. Let's go there live.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
DICK FEDORCIO, DIR. OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS: ... the start of this press conference. The commissioner will be making a statement, then Andy Hayman, assistant commissioner of specialist operations will be making a statement. And we won't be taking any questions at the end of this conference. We will be issuing some photographs, and these will be available to the press through the press association, and through Reuters, and through the normal Scotland Yard press facilities -- Commissioner.
IAN BLAIR, COMM., LONDON METRO POLICE: Thank you. Thank you for coming. As you're aware, there's a lot of police activity going on today in relation to the underground and bus incidents of yesterday. This is a very, very fast-moving investigation. Andy Hayman is going to make an appeal for new information, but there are a few points that I would like to make to begin with. As I've said before, this is the greatest operational challenge ever faced by the Metropolitan Police Service. I think the Metropolitan Police Service and its sister services are doing a magnificent job, but officers are facing previously unknown threats and great danger. We need the understanding of all communities and the cooperation of all communities. We need calm.
We know that there are rumors sweeping London, and I really do appeal for people to listen to the facts as they emerge. We remain resolute and will work tirelessly and imaginatively with every community in London to solve this crime.
The most important message we have, other than this appeal, is that this operation is targeted against criminals; it is not targeted against any community or any section of a community.
There are hundreds of police officers working across London on these inquiries, and our anti-terrorist teams are working literally around the clock, and there probably won't be any letup in that for some considerable time.
I can say that as part of the operations linked to yesterday's incidents, Metropolitan Police officers have shot a man inside Stockwell Underground Station. That happened at approximately 10:00 this morning. Both London ambulance service and the air ambulance attended, and the man was pronounced dead at the scene, and I understand that Stockwell Tube Station remains closed.
The information I have available is that this shooting is directly linked to the ongoing and expanding anti-terrorist operation. I need to make clear that any death is deeply regrettable. But as I understand the situation, the man was challenged and refused to obey police instructions. I can't go any further at this stage, and I'm now going to hand over to Andy Hayman.
ANDY HAYMAN, METROPOLITAN POLICE ASST. COMM.: Thank you, commissioner.
I'd like to start off by reminding everyone that about two weeks ago we slated our objective for this investigation. The objective is to identify and successfully prosecute the people responsible for these events. The resolve to achieve that objective has never been stronger. The energy and enthusiasm in both the community and our officers is at its height.
The purpose of today is to set out what we've done since yesterday's events, which has then led us to us asking the community for their help. It was said yesterday by colleagues that following an event such as yesterday, evidence, opportunities and intelligence opportunities up, increase, and that is the case. And since yesterday, we've been very busy analyzing CC-TV tapes, taking numerous statements and conducting house-to-house inquiries. This has been fruitful, because this afternoon we're going to be issuing CC-TV the images of four men we urgently want to trace in connection with attempts to detonate four explosive devices in the transport system in Central London yesterday. It is crucial that detectives are able to question them about yesterday's event at the Oval, Shepherd's Bush, Warren Street London Underground Stations and on a Route 26 bus in Hackney Road at the junction with Columbia Road E2.
I want to be very clear now about what I want the public to do, because there are two requests here. Firstly -- anyone who has information about where these men currently are, you should immediately call 999, and ask for urgent police response. The public are asked not to approach them.
If anyone believes they know the identities of the men, or has other information about them or their movements, they should contact the confidential anti-terrorist branch hot line on 0-800-789-321.
What I'd like to do now is deal with both, all scenes individually, and describe to you the events that occurred there, and also show you the images that are relevant to those scenes. At the Oval Underground Station, a device was left in a carriage on a northern line train traveling northbound. The image we're now showing shows a man running away from the northern line at the Oval Underground Station at approximately 12:34 hours yesterday. We believe this man had traveled northbound on the northern line from Stockwell Underground Station to the Oval. He was wearing a dark top with the words "New York" written in white across the front. This top was later found in Carly (ph) Road Brickston.
A device was left at the rear of the top deck of the Route 26 bus, traveling from Waterloo to Hackney Wick (ph). The image that's now showing is of a man at the rear of the top deck on that bus at about 12:53 hours. He got off the bus at Hackney Road at approximately 13:06. He was wearing a gray T-shirt with what appears to have been a palm tree design on the front, and a dark jacket with a white baseball cap. At Warren Street, a device was left in a carriage on the northbound Victoria Line.
The image that's now showing of the third person we want to identify shows a man leaving Warren Street Underground at approximately 12:39 hours. He was wearing dark clothing.
Finally, at Shepherd's Bush, a device was left on a Hammersmith & City line train traveling westbound. This final image that's showing is of a man at West (INAUDIBLE) Park Underground Station at approximately 12:21 p.m. We believe he traveled westbound on the Hammersmith & City line to Shepherd's Bush Underground Station, where he ran from the station. He was wearing a dark shirt and trousers, and was later reported to be wearing a white vest.
Now, yesterday's incident do bear similarities to the bomb attacks in London on July 7th, insomuch as there were three underground trains and a bus that were targeted.
There are other features that are emerging, which also are of interest to detectives. Now, we are actively pursuing lines of inquiry. You are aware that earlier today this afternoon we were entering a house in Central London. As we speak, there are two further addresses being entered by Metropolitan Police officers in connection with this investigation.
What this demonstrates is how fast-moving this investigation is, and how hopefully productive the lines of inquiry are. Initial forensic examination indicates that a bomb partially detonated at each of the four sites. At this stage, it is believed that the devices consisted of homemade explosives and were contained in dark-colored bags or rucksacks. At this stage it's too early to tell how these were detonated.
Now, I'm urgently seeking the public's assistance. It's time for the public to do what they're very good at, which is support investigations. It's thought us to decide whether any information is given is of relevance. So if someone thinks it may be relevant, we would have them to contact us as we've guided.
I'd just like to pose a couple of questions which might help people to think through this request. Do you recognize any of these men? Did you see them at the three underground stations or on the bus? Did you see them at different locations? Did you see these men together, before or after the incident? Did you see them with anyone else? If I can remind you, if you see these men, the public response should be to ring 999, and not approach them themselves. If you believe you know the identity of these men or have information relevant to those questions, and a different response is after, ring the hotline of the anti-terrorist branch on 0-800-789-321 -- Commissioner.
BLAIR: Thank you very much, indeed, Andy. And I would like to place on record my congratulations to Andy and his team for the speed in which they've reached this stage in the investigation. Just two final messages from me. You've got all the numbers. The first one is this reiteration of the need for calm and the need to understand that rumors will sweep around about what's happening.
At the moment, the situation is under control and the investigation is proceeding. The scenes are under control. The houses that are being searched are under control, and the second crucial message is that we can only defeat this form of terror by working with communities, by getting the communities' support into everything that we're doing. We will try and explain everything that we possibly can, but it is a very, very fast-moving scenario, and we can only do that from time to time. I'm very grateful to the people of London for the way in which they have reacted so far, and I hope very much that we will be able to bring this to a swift a conclusion as possible. Thanks very much.
FEDORCIO: That ends this briefing. At this time I do not anticipate any further briefings today, but if that situation changes...
HARRIS: And wrapping up now the briefing at the QE2 Center. You've been listening to Ian Blair, who is the metropolitan police commissioner. Also Andy Hayman, the Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner. And as we sort of recapped what we heard during the briefing, we first heard Ian Blair say that there was a lot, a lot of police activity going on right now. Some of that we detailed for you this morning, that the situation, the investigation is very fluid, very ongoing at this time, and that there is a great operational challenge that is being undertaken now by the officers and everyone working at Scotland Yard, that the officers are facing unknown threats.
Then you heard Ian Blair repeat the first time, and then he repeated it again at the close of the briefing a need for calm amongst the community there, that rumors are sweeping throughout London, and then there was more.
We'll take up more of those points that came out of that briefing with Christiane Amanpour, or chief international correspondent. And, Christiane, those were some of the points that came out of that briefing. But I'm sure you heard many more?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed. And in terms of the specifics of what we'd be looking for, answers to, for instance, who they shot today, Sir Ian Blair would only say that this shooting was directly linked to the ongoing and expanding investigation. He said that the man was challenged and refused to obey police instructions, and he confirmed that the man was shot dead.
You also saw the briefers -- his deputy Andy Hayman, describing and showing the pictures of the suspects that they have identified on CC-TV. And there were very, very specific descriptions of what they were wearing, what time they were seen, in many instances running away from the three tube stations and on the bus. Talking about the specific locations, where they were traveling and appealing for people now to come forward and tell the police if they know anything. Said that if you see these people, do not approach them. Calm the emergency service, which is 999 in this country. And if you have any other information about this, then call the appropriate hotlines.
In terms of forensic evidence, again, interesting. He said that these bombs partially detonated on all four locations yesterday. There was a lot of confusion as to what had exploded and what hasn't. Was it faulty explosives? Was it faulty detonators? He is saying that all four partially detonated at all four locations. He said they were made from homemade explosives. They were carried in dark bags, or rucksacks, and he said it is too early to tell how they were detonated. Again, appealing for the public to come forward, saying it is time for the public to support this investigation. We urgently need the public's help.
In terms of the investigation, saying that it was very fast- moving and proceeding along several fronts. That since yesterday, there have been, in his words, very busy analyzing CC-TV images, statements from eyewitnesses, and going house to house, confirming that this afternoon there have been three addresses, as he puts it, entered by the Metropolitan Police.
In other words, they've gone to the location where they believe that there are three suspicious addresses and they have gone there. One of those, we told earlier, was in West London. And police have told people to stay off the road there, Harrow Road, and they wouldn't say why. But there has been an armed response to an address there, and to two further addresses.
So, again, fast-moving. They have quite a lot of detail. They've shown a lot of detail. And they're still appealing now for people to hand in those people that they've just identified on the CC- TV images.
HARRIS: OK. Christiane, thank you. We want to show a picture of President Bush -- as you may know, is due in Atlanta today. And there you see the doors open on Air Force One. The president is here in Atlanta to talk about Medicare and Social Security. We are going to monitor this situation, because we believe -- OK.
It's been confirmed that president will talk about the situation, the ongoing investigation, the events of yesterday, the events of today in London, during his appearance at the Atlanta Civic Center. And that is scheduled for 11:00 -- I believe 11:20 this morning. We will certainly take you there and get those comments. There you see President Bus in Atlanta. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
At 11:20, is the time that we have this morning, the president is scheduled it speak at the Atlanta Civic Center to an invited-only audience on the subjects of Social Security and Medicare. But we do understand now that the president will talk about the ongoing situation in London, the state of the investigation and maybe we'll get some new information there. Barbara bush, the president's mom, here in Atlanta as well.
We will take a break. When we come back, a couple of security experts will be here to talk to us about the ongoing investigation in London. First of all, CNN security analyst Richard Falkenrath. And then Tim Crockett, who was a security expert who actually trained at Scotland Yard. He can give us a sense how the investigation is rolling out from a police standpoint.
More CNN LIVE TODAY right after this quick break.
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HARRIS: As we follow the ongoing investigation in London, let's bring in Tim Crockett, who is a security expert. And he actually trained at Scotland Yard. He's on the phone with us. Tim, good day.
TIM CROCKETT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AKE: Good day.
HARRIS: Well, Tim, give us a sense -- you heard the briefing just a few moments ago. Give us a sense of -- based on your experience, how the investigation is unfolding at the present?
CROCKETT: Well, I can see from what was said there and, obviously, other events ongoing in London at the moment, that things are moving very, very quickly. It's good to see and it's reassuring to see that officers there and various units are following through on probably hard evidence, maybe thrown up from the forensic information and evidence from these sort of partially detonated devices. So it's reassuring that the various units are -- haven't lost the skills they've so picked up over the last sort of 20 to 30 years of dealing with such events.
HARRIS: Tim, we're actually looking at new pictures right as we talk to you from Harrow Road, where the police investigation is continuing there. We understand that section of Harrow Road, which we believe to be a residential area -- we can certainly see that from these pictures -- has been closed off. I have to ask you, the pictures released by the CC-TV cameras, pretty much routine. I guess I'm wondering, what, if anything, you see in the investigation that might lead one to believe that the authorities are making serious headway in terms of getting at the tentacles of this operation?
CROCKETT: Well, obviously, the -- the amount of areas that they're now sort of moving in on, specific addresses and specific areas of the city. Obviously, they are pulling together either information from eyewitnesses, CC-TV, various sources of information about tip-offs, other things like that, as well as forensic information. So they're putting all that together and diverting resources to obviously get hold of some of the -- get a firm link to help out with the inquiries and the arrests of those involved.
HARRIS: OK, Tim, thank you. As we say good-bye to you, Tim, we can also confirm that police are confirming for us that the man who was shot this morning very near the Shepherd's Street Station, the tube station, was, in fact, connected to -- was being followed by authorities. So that person who was shot this morning, authorities had an eye on him, had reason to be following him, and followed him this morning. And you'll recall in the briefing, it was made note of that he was challenged by the authorities, but did not follow their commands.
As we move forward now, let's bring in CNN security analyst Richard Falkenrath. Richard, good to talk to you again. And I have to ask you, the releasing of the photos -- I tried to get into it a little bit earlier with Tim there -- but the releasing of the photos, what does that say to you?
RICHARD FALKENRATH, CNN SECURITY ANALYST: Well, it's really an extraordinary step. And you can see the strain on the face of Ian Blair and Andy Hayman. You do it for one and only one reason, and that is because you are worried that another attack is imminent. And that, I think, is what's going through their mind right now, that they're in a race against time, against at least three perpetrators of yesterday's attack who know that Scotland Yard is closing in on them. And now, if they want to stage another attack, is the time they have to do it. And so that is my interpretation of this quite extraordinary development.
HARRIS: There's a scene -- you almost can paint a scene in your own mind's eye of a city potentially -- don't want to get ahead of the story -- but potentially under siege. We had an attack two weeks ago with deadly consequences. We have the situation that occurred yesterday. We have clearly police fanned out all over London following up on anything.
And then you have the release of this surveillance photos from these surveillance cameras today. And there is a sense, if I hear what you're saying, that there maybe one cell, one large cell, maybe even multiple cells, operating right now that the authorities are trying to get a handle on.
FALKENRATH: That's right. It's a very, very serious situation. These individuals, presumably still at large, know that the net is closing on them. And they will be caught. There is no question. They'll either be apprehended or killed in the takedown. And so they have a limited amount of time available to them if they want to carry out another attack.
And if they have the means to do that -- they still have some improvised explosives -- this is the time they've got to do it. And that, I think, is a very terrifying proposition for the security services in London. It's almost like an episode from 24, the television show. I mean, this sort of thing happens almost never.
HARRIS: Richard, why not just shut down the system then?
FALKENRATH: Yes. I suspect they thought about that. In this situation, one of the issues that at least we in the White House, I think, would have raised -- we might have reached the same decision -- is, why not right now close the tube? Close the subway, close the bus systems. Since that's been the target of previous attack. They obviously elected not to do that. They're taking a chance, because they're counting on the effectiveness of their investigation.
Maybe they calculated that even if they close the tube, you'd still have large concentrations of people out in public places, a deadly attack could still occur. But that should have been something that they thought about. If there is an attack in the tube tonight or tomorrow, they will clearly rue the decision not to close it.
HARRIS: Well, Richard, you know, there was also the statement about rumors swirling around in London. This is not a situation where the London authorities can be concerned with hurting people's feelings, and, you know, questions of profiling at this point?
FALKENRATH: Well, that's right. They are obviously having a very vigorous intervention probably in the South Asian community in London. And they're worried about an explosion, or, really, a serious blow back from that community. They're trying to make clear to that community that we need your help, you are part of the solution here. Help us. Don't think of us as the enemy. Because it's most likely that a lead in identification of one of these individuals will come from exactly that community. So they want them to feel like they're on the same side.
HARRIS: Richard, thanks for your help. Much more on the ongoing, fast-moving, very fluid investigation of the situation in London at the top of the hour. And we're also waiting, at about 11:20 this morning, to hear from the president. He is in Atlanta to talk about Social Security and Medicare, but he will, we understand, make some comments about the ongoing situation in London. We'll take a break. More CNN LIVE TODAY right after this.
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