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![]() Sunday, April 25, 1999 Published at 05:10 GMT 06:10 UK ![]() ![]() UK ![]() 'Racist' bomb attacks linked ![]() An eye witness said the roof of a car was blown 100ft ![]() A nail bomb has rocked the centre of the Bangladeshi community in London - exactly a week after a similar device injured 39 people in Brixton. Seven people were hurt - none seriously - in the latest attack in the east of the city. Police said they had received a 999 call from someone saying it was left by the neo-nazi group Combat 18.
Police say they believe the latest attack was "racist" and they were linking the two explosions.
It is believed that a man found the device in a holdall and put it in his car with the intention of taking it to a police station when it exploded outside a cafe.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Alan Fry, head of the anti-terrorist branch, expressed his "personal disgust" at the bombing and said he wanted to assure local people that his officers would be working to make the area safe. He said: "I have to say the device has similarities to the one in Brixton. I am linking the crimes, I am looking at this as a racist offence."
He said it has emerged that one week before the Brixton explosion, threatening letters were sent from another racist group called the White Wolves. Our correspondent says this may be a cell of just a few people trying to stir up a race war in the city.
Driver injured Police investigators believe the man who found the Brick lane device had put it in the boot of his car, and received only minor injuries when it went off.
A spokesman for the Royal London Hospital at nearby Whitechapel, said they had treated six people - one woman and five men - for "relatively minor" injuries.
Blair's outrage Prime Minister Tony Blair received a report of the explosion in Washington. He said: "These things are outrageous and we will not tolerate them and we will make every effort to find out those responsible and bring them to justice."
He told BBC News Online: "I came out and saw people running away from Brick Lane." Mr Mortuza said: "People are very angry. This is the heart of the Bangladeshi community and this must be the work of racists. "Our community was not mentally prepared for this. But we have fought racism in the past and will do it again. We are not going away."
Local councillor Syed Mizan, speaking from the scene, said: "Everybody is shocked. 'We want to live in peace' "We have good community relations in this area. We are a multi-racial community here and we want to live in peace." Mr Mizan said he knew one of the injured, who worked for a local charity.
"But I would have thought the police were keeping an eye on ethnic minority communities."
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