Inquiry rebuff: Bomb victims' views

As ministers refuse to hold a public inquiry into the 7 July London bombings, BBC News speaks to survivors of the attacks and those who lost their loved ones.

SABA MOZAKKA

Iranian-born Behnaz Mozakka, 47, was killed on the Piccadilly Tube Line train near King's Cross.

Behnaz Mozakka's family say they deserve to know what happened

Her daughter, Saba, believes a public inquiry is necessary because bereaved families have been kept in the dark about the progress of the investigation.

All the information that has so far emerged has been by the press. I understand there have been a number of select committee investigations into it but at no point have the families been asked their view.

We did spend five days searching for my mum - obviously we've got opinions about where it all went wrong. In terms of searching for loved ones in hospitals - the lack of information.

Since the incident, no-one's spoken to us about what's happened with the investigation. As far as we are concerned this is a murder investigation, and we deserve to know what's happened and what progress has been made.

KIRSTY

Kirsty, who lives in north London, was on the Piccadilly Line train on her way to work when it was attacked.

She says an inquiry is needed not to find out what happened but to understand why it happened.

I have never once been contacted by anyone to give a statement and no support has been offered to me by anyone - let alone the government.

We have set up a support group amongst survivors and have helped each other that way.

To wake up this morning and hear that the government had decided that the worst terrorist attack in peacetime this country has ever seen does not warrant a public inquiry just sickens me.

Sadly it does not surprise me.

If they already know the answers can they please tell me why my tube was blown up on the way to work?

They say they are going to publish a narrative to explain to us what happened. The people on that tube already know what happened, that is not what we are trying to understand.

What is important is why it happened and how it can be prevented from happening again.

We need to understand how intelligence, security, community relations and all the other factors involved can be improved.

MARIE FATAYI-WILLIAMS

Anthony Fatayi-Williams, 26, an oil executive, was killed on the No30 bus in Tavistock square.

His mother, Marie, told the Press Association news agency the victims' families had been treated with "utter disdain".

To me it looked like the final nail in the coffin of the government's lack of consideration towards the victims and their families.

Mrs Fatayi-Williams lives in Nigeria

I ask myself - if there is really nothing to hide then why shy away from a public inquiry?

It is the only real way that we can truly get things discussed and see for ourselves what happened and what lessons can be learnt and whether we are better prepared now than on 7 July.

I have a son who was killed and is never going to come back. Nobody is going to tell me that [an inquiry] is a waste of police time.

I believe that we, the families of the victims, have been treated with utter disdain and this is the final straw.

JOHN FALDING

Anat Rosenberg was on the phone to her partner, John Falding, when a bomb destroyed the No30 bus, killing her and 12 others.

Anat Rosenberg was planning a trip to her native Israel

Mr Falding believes a public inquiry is what most of the bereaved would want.

The common view among us is that we deserve rather better than this.

It is a very convenient way of proceeding. Convenient for the government but not so re-assuring for us.

RACHEL

Rachel, from north London, survived the Piccadilly Line train bomb.

She says a public inquiry is needed to provide ordinary people with the answers to their questions.

Apparently it will take too long, be too expensive and only tell us things we already know.

We have spent a thousand days in Iraq and £3.1bn. Is that too long? Is that too expensive? Is the link between Iraq and 7 July what we already know? Of course it is.

Ordinary people, not politicians take the buses and tubes each day. Ordinary people pay the price for wars and policies politicians implement.

We have questions, we deserve public answers.