Why did they do it?
2006-07-06 14:46
London - A year ago, four young British Muslims blew themselves up in a murderous suicide attack on London's transport system. Here is a summary of their background and motives:
Background
Three of the men, Mohammad Sidique Khan, Shehzad Tanweer,
and Hasib Hussain all grew up in the Beeston area of Leeds.
Khan, 30, was a teaching assistant at a local primary school
working with special-needs children. He was said to have a real
talent for working with young people and was highly regarded.
Tanweer, 22, did well at school and went on to study sports
science at Leeds Metropolitan University. He was also a gifted
sportsman and played cricket for the local team.
Hussain, 18, left school with a few GCSEs at grade C and
below. He was quiet at school but was remembered for his large
physique and had lost five stone before taking part in the
attacks.
Jermaine Lindsay, 19, was born in Jamaica and moved to
Huddersfield with his mother. He was said to be successful
academically and good at sport. He converted to Islam in 2000
shortly after his mother did. Afterwards his behaviour was said
to have changed and he was disciplined at school for handing out leaflets in support of al-Qaeda.
Why did they do it?
There were very few signs of extremism from any of the three
Leeds bombers.
In 2001 Khan was said to be serious about religion but spoke
out against the 9/11 attacks at his school.
Tanweer was also said to have taken religion seriously from
an early age but was said to have been calm and friendly. From
mid-2002 he became more focused on religion but no one around
him noticed strict religious observance turning to extremism.
Hussain, who once wrote "Al-Qaeda No Limits" on a book at
school, was open about his support for the group but did little
else to attract attention. He took to wearing traditional Muslim
clothing and reading religious texts after undertaking a Hajj
visit to Saudi Arabia with his family in early 2002.
Lindsay was believed to have been strongly influenced by an
extremist preacher Abdallah al Faisal who was jailed for
encouraging his followers to commit murder.
Motivation
The government has offered little explanation as to the
group's motivation.
A video statement by Khan, aired two months after the
bombings, said this:
"Until we feel secure, you will be our targets. Until you
stop the bombing, gassing, imprisonment and torture ... we will
not stop this fight. We are at war and I am a soldier."
He also referred to Osama bin Laden and the slain al-Qaeda
leader in Iraq, Musab al-Zarqawi as "heroes".
Home secretary John Reid said their motivation was anger at
what they perceived to be injustice committed against Muslims
around the world and a desire for martyrdom.
Were they directed from abroad?
Khan and Tanweer both visited Pakistan between November 2004
and February 2005. Khan is thought to have received some form of training there.
He is also thought to have had training in a remote part of
Pakistan in July 2003, and it is believed he had visited
Pakistan and Afghanistan on other occasions from the late 1990s.
The police have concluded there is no evidence to suggest
they were directed by al-Qaeda or had any support from the
organisation, although the nature of the bombings was typical of attacks carried out by the group.
It is also unclear whether other groups of individuals in
the UK were involved in radicalising or helping the bombers in
any way. No person has been charged in connection with the
attacks.