London Indymedia

Alston points finger at 'anarchists'

hrm | 07.07.2005 21:06 | G8 2005 | Analysis | Indymedia | Repression | London

Australia's High Commissioner in London Richard Alston believes bombs in the city are most likely the work of anti-globalisation 'anarchists' to coincide with the Group of Eight summit meeting in Scotland.


Alston points finger at 'anarchists'
Jul 08 06:21
AAP


Australia's High Commissioner in London Richard Alston believes bombs in the city are most likely the work of anti-globalisation 'anarchists' to coincide with the Group of Eight summit meeting in Scotland.

Alston played down claims from the little-known Secret Group of al-Qaeda's Jihad in Europe that it was responsible for the four blasts that have killed at least 40 commuters.

The leaders of the world's eight richest countries are meeting at the Scottish resort of Gleneagles.

"Everyone is speculating about the possible source of this," he said.

"If this was done to coincide with Gleneagles then it's more likely to be a more narrow group of anti-globalisation protesters or anarchists who seem to take great delight in disrupting meetings of international leaders."

Three blasts on the London underground train service and one on a double decker bus rocked the capital at peak hour this morning, crippling the transport system and the city.

At least 33 people have been confirmed dead.

Australian consular staff are at St Mary's Hospital and the Royal London Hospital and plan to attend other major hospitals in London in the search for any Australian victims.

"We've been doing our best to make contact with the hospitals, it seems to be a bit early for them to be able to give us any useful intelligence," Alston said.

"We've been liaising with all the emergency organisations.

"There's not much more we can do except monitor the situation and over time we expect the hospitals to be able to give us something more meaningful."

Alston said the 'terrorists' may have targeted London while a major security operation was protecting world leaders, including US President George Bush, at Gleneagles.

"People in London have always been of the view that something was bound to happen here," he said.

"As we know there have been a few near misses ... which is a tribute to security here.

"Maybe one reason why they didn't directly target Gleneagles and took the soft option to come to London when everyone's attention was elsewhere."

He said Australia would back Britain in its fight against 'terror'.

"I don't think there's any doubt at all the British government will be resolute and determined and we'll be 110 per cent behind them and I'm sure the British people will be as well," Alston said.

"If these things are designed to intimidate and cower, then they simply don't work."

People unable to make contact with Australians in London who they believe may have been up in the incidents can contact the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra on 1300 555 135.

hrm

Comments

Hide the following 11 comments

What?

07.07.2005 21:36

Well at least the Wombles cannot be blammed, since they were (nearly) all in jail at the time. What bolloks!

m


Tarred and tainted

07.07.2005 21:58

Some blockies smash a few windows and we are being accused of mass murder? Huh? This should be too stoopid to matter but Alston is not a little ned who can be ignored. This needs serious refutation.

c


not really

07.07.2005 22:43

Just because some big-wig ambassador states that 'anti-globalisation protesters' did it - but he has no evidence and it can safely be ignored. IMO anyway.

Now if it was the chief of the met saying it.... that would be something to be up in metaphorical arms about...

fredrico
mail e-mail: musteatvegan@yahoo.co.uk


pulling an aznar

07.07.2005 22:47

sounds like alston is pulling a jose maria aznar on this.

aznar blamed basques for the march 11 bombings. then the people gave him the boot.

it's just what we should expect, but any politician or political appointee who plays like this needs to be voted out or recalled through pressure.

unfortunately, the grandmaster (or should i say, grandwizard) of this style of politics is sitting in the white house.

que se vayans todos, companer@s.

un abrazo from new york city.

ps


Outrageous

08.07.2005 00:35

Other comments in the wake of the bombings in London suggested it was outrageous and paranoid to suspect that they were a secret service 'false flag' operation like the piazza fontana bombing in italy in the 70s.

But if a moron with a public profile like this can finger anarchists then why cant anarchists express their suspicions that these attacks were carried out with the sole aim of legitimizing the increase of state repression, especially in light of the probable desire on the part of Bu$h and co to attack Iran?

IMO this site is prone to postings of "grassroots" dis-informationists pretending to be innocent trolls! But then again I'd rather decide whats true or false for myself, regardless of the source.

Long live independent media

nobody


Is there a website link for this story?

08.07.2005 01:14

Is there a web link for this story? I've searched the internet for it and can't find it. Would like to know if Alston really said those things so I can talk about it on the radio. If I can confirm the quote it will be quite useful

4ZZZ reporer from Australia


misleading article

08.07.2005 10:42

I have to conclude that the Richard Alston "quote" is from the authors imagination. It seemed like the kind of thing he would be stupid enough to say though.

4zzz radio person


It's real

08.07.2005 11:40

f


Anarchist response

08.07.2005 12:11

In case anyone is not aware UK anarchists have released a statement condemning the bombing, see  http://www.anarkismo.net/newswire.php?story_id=885 This has been sent to the daily papers and translated so far into Dutch and Polish

There is also a statement from Southern African anarchists  http://www.anarkismo.net/newswire.php?story_id=895

Joe


alston isnt telling full truth (..)

08.07.2005 13:01

the article about alston staytes: it be a bit early to interview in hospitals..
this is moreless obvious humbug, elsewhere it's stated several, rather some(), witnesses reported a nervous looking man checking his bag in the bus.
concerning that supposedly quitte some people got killed inthere , they wudnt very probably
all be unhurt that witnessed this, so i think the article about alston is of mediocre value, when interpreted as facts.
it's engineered i would say.

onix


Hmm...

08.07.2005 13:29

Whilst I fully agree that British involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan has given these terrorists an immediately accessible "catre blanche" to "justify" their deeds, I can't help but feel considerable scepticism as to the honesty of this theory of caustion on the part of such Islamists.

After all, an Islamist cell bombed the Paris Metro back in 1995 for unfathomable reasons.

No, I think there is a general desire toward violence on the part of these terror cells which is only retroactively articulated as being part of some "jihad". I agree with Zizek's argument about 9/11 - it was really little more than a case of the terrorists saying "look, we can do this" in rather nihilistic fashion, with all the subsequent stories about mass conspiracies and order emanating from Afghanistan being attempts to rationalise the utterly irrational.

John


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