08-07-2025
Britain marks 20 years of London bombings with reflection
Experts like Naomi Davis-Crane, a former counterterrorism analyst, warned of ongoing threats, especially from lone actors radicalised online.
08 Jul 2025 02:18pm
Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales prepares to lay a bouquet of flowers as he attends a service at the 7/7 memorial in London's Hyde Park on July 7, 2025, to remember of the 52 people killed during the London bombings of July 7, 2005. (Photo by Chris Jackson / POOL / AFP)
LONDON - Britain on Monday marked the 20th anniversary of the 2005 London bombings that killed 52 people and injured over 700, with ceremonies, remembrance, and renewed focus on counterterrorism, reported Xinhua.
At 8.50am, the time the first bomb exploded, Prime Minister Keir Starmer and London Mayor Sadiq Khan laid wreaths at Hyde Park's memorial, with King Charles III praising acts of courage and compassion from that day. A general view at a memorial service at the 7/7 memorial in London's Hyde Park on July 7, 2025, to remember of the 52 people killed during the London bombings of July 7, 2005. Britain on Monday marks 20 years since the London bombings, when four homegrown Islamist extremists detonated suicide bombs on three underground trains and a bus across central London, killing dozens and injuring hundreds more. (Photo by Chris Jackson / POOL / AFP)
Experts like Naomi Davis-Crane, a former counterterrorism analyst, warned of ongoing threats, especially from lone actors radicalised online. She stressed the need for vigilance, better victim support, and stricter control of extremist content on social media.
"There is a melancholy, and just a question as to when it will happen again - because it will happen again," she told Xinhua.
While the 7/7 attacks (referring to the 7 July 2005 bombing) were carried out by four British nationals radicalised by al-Qaeda ideology, more recent incidents - including the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing and the 2021 explosion outside Liverpool Women's Hospital - reflect an emerging pattern of lone actors radicalised online.
The case of Southport murderer Axel Rudakubana may further illustrate how radicalisation has increasingly moved online.
"A significant number of counterterrorist authorities during the last 20 years have realised the need to manage content that people are consuming via social media," said Davis-Crane.
"The social media platforms themselves have to identify and remove the content, and there is a responsibility on governments to legislate in this field," she added.
"Terrorism will impact every individual in a very different way, and the support needs will potentially last a lifetime," she said. - BERNAMA-XINHUA
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