There is no 'over there'

I haven't posted for a while. I spontaneously went into a blogging hiatus, and only interrupted it because of today's al-Qaeda attacks on London. I used to live there, which makes these events even more upsetting and enraging. The city is a very special place, and -- like every al-Qaeda attack -- these barbarisms are not just directed at their victims, or even just their countrymen, but at us all.

There is no distinction between "here" and "over there." Whether it's Beslan, Baghdad, New York, or London, it is only incidental that some of us live while others of us die.

In typical al-Qaeda fashion, it was a multi-dimensional attack. Underground lines were attacked between stations, and one double-decker bus was bombed. It's unimaginable what conditions must be like in the Tube, and the conditions down there will exacerbate the death toll. The bus was attacked in Tavistock Square. It's unclear whether the bombs were suiciders, but I imagine they had to have been as Londoners have much history with package bombs. BBC has a personal account of one of the trains. It doesn't sound like the bomb was very big.

Also, here is BBC's news page. They will do the best job of covering the immediate events today. Tony Blair's initial statement is available here (watch here):

It's particularly barbaric that this has happened on a day when people are meeting to try to help the problems of poverty in Africa and the long-term problems of climate change in the environment.

President Bush's statement here, video free at CNN.com.

Charging RINO has a post he is continually updating, which you should check in with. He points to Buzzmachine, who is tracking London blogging. Norm Geras is updating; also see this. A Fistful of Euros is doing a superb job. Also see the Command Post today.

The Telegraph on the al-Qaeda spinoff claiming credit; also Reuters. Folks familiar with the Tube lines will want to see where precisely the attacks took place, and on what lines. I've copied this aid from the BBC (also see the Times' graphic):

The Times has attack analysis:

First the bombs were synchronised to go off at the same time and cause maximum terror. The same method was used by al-Qaeda against the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es-Salaam, against the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon in Washington on September 11, 2001, against nightclubs frequented by Australian tourists in Bali, and against the British consulate-general and the HSBC bank in Istanbul.

Ignore the whole "previously unkown group" shtick in some wire reports. That is just journalists covering their asses. This is a major operation, and the structure of the group and its ultimate relationship to the broader global jihad should be the focus. The group itself is a facet of something much broader; the nature of its linkage to that broader movement will be a key dimension, however. The question will be if, like Madrid, it was a cell operating almost totally independently, or if it was organized and triggered through a network that had some oversight from Zarqawi -- who's reportedly been wanting to go global -- or other al-Qaeda leadership in Afghanistan.

I don't plan any more updates today, but many of the blogs I linked to will be providing near constant coverage. Lastly, it is worth our time to rewatch Frontline's Al-Qaeda's New Front, on al-Qaeda's increasing focus on Europe as a target.

Comments

[Leda]

I dropped by, thinking what you would write about what happened.

After living in London for two years, these bombs feel too personal. Even more if two of them were pretty close of where I used to study.

[Stygius]

Hi! Glad you are well and are writing again.

I had that same sense, 'that's my city!' Living in London, the Tube is as necessary as breathing.