Dozens die as terror attacks hit London
(China Daily)
Updated: 2005-07-08 05:59
Britain has been a key ally of the United States in its war in Iraq, where al-Qaida is waging a bloody insurgency.
A police officer walks from the bus destroyed by a bomb in London yesterday. Police said they believed at least 33 people had been killed in a series of blasts which rocked central London.[AFP]
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London's police chief Ian Blair said there were indications of explosives at the blast sites.
"We are concerned that this is a co-ordinated attack," he told Sky television.
People were seen streaming out of one underground station covered with blood and soot. Passengers were evacuated from stations across the capital, many in shock and with their clothes ripped to shreds, witnesses said.
The city's streets rapidly emptied and financial markets plummeted as it became increasingly apparent that the blasts were an attack, and not a power surge on the underground train system as had first been reported.
On the currency market, the safe-haven Swiss franc hit a six-week high against sterling and rose more than 1 per cent against the dollar following the explosions.
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