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London Bridge and Borough Market terror attack inquests open London Bridge and Borough Market terror attack inquests open
(32 minutes later)
Eight people were killed and 48 more were seriously injured in less than 10 minutes of “high and terrible drama” during the London Bridge and Borough Market terror attack, the chief coroner has said. Eight people were killed and 48 injured in less than 10 minutes of “high and terrible” drama as terrorists went on the rampage in the heart of London, an inquest has heard.
Mark Lucraft QC addressed the families of the eight victims killed in the 2017 atrocity on the first day of an inquest in a packed court one at the Old Bailey on Tuesday. The London Bridge inquests began at the Old Bailey on Tuesday with details of the attack on 3 June 2017 being read out by Judge Mark Lucraft QC, the chief coroner. Details emerged of an off-duty nurse killed as she tried to help the wounded, and a passerby who desperately tried to tackle the terrorists with a skateboard.
He expressed his condolences as he said: “The lives of many people were torn apart by what took place in less than 10 minutes of high and terrible drama.” Families of those killed were in court as the inquest began. The family of Xavier Thomas, one of those killed in the attack, told of the impact of their loss, saying: “Our whole world has fallen apart.”
Lucraft said: “It is important to acknowledge that many lives were saved by the rapid response of members of the public and members of the emergency services. Lucraft said: “The attack as a whole took less than 10 minutes from the van driving along the pavement to the attackers being stopped by police.”
“A number of those were eyewitnesses to the unfolding drama and will give evidence of what they saw.” Eight people were killed and the three attackers were shot dead by armed police.
Lucraft QC told the court that he hoped the inquest would answer the “obvious and understandable questions” of the relatives of those who died and give the bereaved families some comfort. Lucraft said the attacks began with a rented van being driven into pedestrians on London Bridge on a Saturday evening: “As the van drove across the bridge it repeatedly mounted the pavement and struck people walking.”
The Metropolitan police commissioner, Cressida Dick, the head of UK counter-terrorism policing Neil Basu and the commissioner of City of London police, Ian Dyson, joined the families in standing for one minute’s silence. Christine Archibald, 30, from Canada, and 45-year-old Xavier Thomas, a French national, were killed after being run over. Thomas was flung over the side of the bridge by the impact of the van and recovered from the River Thames days later.
Following the chief coroner’s opening statement, the court will hear a series of pen portraits of the three women and five men who died. The attackers were Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22.
The attack took place on Saturday 3 June 2017, a night many people were out watching the Uefa Champions League Final in Cardiff on big screens in London. After ploughing into pedestrians on London Bridge, they then ran through Borough market stabbing people with knives tied to their wrists, Lucraft said.
Three women and five men died after three men ploughed into crowds in a white van before stabbing revellers with 12in (30cm) ceramic knives. He added: “The lives of many people were torn apart by what took place in less than 10 minutes of high and terrible drama.”
The victims were Christine Archibald, 30, Xavier Thomas, 45, Alexandre Pigeard, 26, Sara Zelenak, 21, Kirsty Boden, 28, Sebastien Belanger, 36, James McMullan, 32, and Ignacio Echeverria, 39. The atrocity continued as the terrorists stabbed the 21-year-old Australian Sara Zelenak, an au pair.
Their attackers, Khuram Butt, 27, Rachid Redouane, 30, and Youssef Zaghba, 22, were shot dead by police at the scene. Sebastien Belanger, a 36-year-old French national, “was cornered by all three attackers”, the coroner said, but bravely fought back and died after suffering “horrific injuries”.
The attack came just three months after Khalid Masood mowed down pedestrians on Westminster Bridge in a hired car before stabbing a police officer to death. Butt, the attack ringleader, then stabbed Alexandre Pigeard, 26, a French restaurant worker, with the 28-year-old Australian Kirsty Boden killed next after going to help the injured. She was a nurse at Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospital and was on an evening out with friends.
The inquests are expected to examine why there were still no barriers to protect pedestrians on London Bridge by 3 June. Lucraft said Butt made a “swinging motion” at Boden, who ran towards an alleyway where she was later found dead from her injuries.
Families will also want answers to how Butt was able to plan and carry out the attack while he was under investigation by security services. The attack happened on the evening of the Champions League final, which was being watched in a pub by 32-year-old James McMullan, the only Briton killed that evening. He went out for a cigarette and was caught up in the attack. He was also found dead in an alleyway.
Another issue likely to be raised by lawyers acting for the relatives of the victims is the lack of security checks required to hire rental vehicles after cars and lorries were used as weapons in Nice, Berlin and Westminster Bridge. Some people, the inquest heard, were stabbed while on the ground. Two police officers who were unarmed tried to halt the attack and were also injured.
In the coming weeks, the court will hear from witnesses, the family and friends of the attackers and a senior MI5 officer. Ignacio Echeverría, 39, a Spanish national, made “courageous efforts”, joining the two police officers in tackling the terrorists.
Other evidence is expected to include CCTV footage of the attacks and the terrorists’ movements, body-worn video from police officers and footage from members of the public caught up in the carnage. He only had a skateboard, and died after being stabbed.
Lucraft said: “After killing Ignacio the attackers jogged along Borough High Street.”
The atrocity was only ended when the attackers, who had taken steroids, tried to kill armed police officers, who shot all three dead.
Attending the first day in court was the Met police commissioner, Cressida Dick, and Ian Dyson, the commissioner of the City of London police.
The attack ringleader, Butt, was on MI5’s radar at the time of the attack and on its list of 3,000 terrorist suspects.
Butt was under active MI5 investigation when he struck, and was suspected of potential involvement in attack planning. He was also on bail for a criminal matter.
He was described as increasing his operational security and by 2017 worked at the Ummah fitness centre in east London, where he met his fellow attacker Redouane. He taught Qur’an classes to youngsters alongside his other co-conspirator, Zaghba.
The London Bridge attack was one of four terrorist atrocities in the UK between March and June 2017. A review into them for the government by the barrister David Anderson QC said: “The unpalatable lesson of London Bridge is that even priority subjects of interest in respect of whom sound decisions are being made ... may retain the ability to conceal their attack planning from the authorities.”
The inquest may test those conclusions and continues.
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