7/7: The London Bombings
July 7, 2005: four bombs explode in London. They are the first suicide bombings on English soil. Hour by hour, day by day, this is the in-depth story of the biggest police investigation in British history to find the terrorists responsible. Detectives, survivors, emergency services and victims’ families speak about their experiences. What could have been done differently to avoid this tragedy?
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7/7: The London Bombings on BBC Select
Episode 1: The Bombing
Detectives, survivors, emergency services and victims’ families speak about the bombings.
On July 7, 2005, bombs are detonated across London. The police have no idea it’s the work of suicide bombers as the prime minister demands answers. Forensic officers carry out a detailed search, but the police still aren’t certain of a motive. Meanwhile, the casualty telephone line is inundated as 47,000 people call in the first hour. Can the police find out who did it before they strike again?
Episode 2: The Hunt Begins
Following the attacks, politicians, survivors and police come to terms with the impact.
After the London bombings, the police and security services are concerned that a new attack is coming. They don’t know for certain that the terrorists killed themselves in the blasts. At the explosion sites, crime investigators pick through wreckage and endure the emotionally taxing task of recovering human remains. As they search, they discover the IDs of two suspects at two different bomb sites.
Episode 3: The Hunt Continues
Two weeks after the 7/7 attack, the police are still on the trail of those responsible.
In a major breakthrough, police use CCTV to trace the movements of the bombers. They identify a fourth suspect and begin to search for a reason why these apparently ordinary men killed 52 people. 24 hours later, intelligence leads the police to a London address. They follow a man who they believe could be one of the terrorists to an underground train station, shooting him dead.
Episode 4: The Aftermath
Have the police shot and killed one of the London bombers or made a tragic mistake?
Police believe they’ve shot one of the London bombers on a tube train. But was he a terrorist or an innocent bystander? A tip-off leads police to a bomb factory, but when they finally locate a suspect, he escapes. A desperate manhunt culminates in armed standoffs between police and terrorists. Two decades on, investigators, rescuers and survivors reveal how the bombings have shaped their lives.
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