Thursday, January 18, 2007

07/07 London Bomb Attacks

In this article about the trial of some related bombers, the Telegraph reveals the formula, or should I say recipe for the backpack bombs:

The detonators went off but the hydrogen peroxide and chapatti flour mixture, surrounded by nuts and bolts to cause maximum damage and carnage, did not ignite, Mr Sweeney said.
CHAPATTI FLOUR MIXTURE AS A BOMB COMPONENT!

Actually, flour can explode when dispersed in air and then ignited - but still...pretty amazing.

How they made the bombs:
Between April 28 and July 5, the group bought 284 bottles of hydrogen peroxide costing £550 from shops in Finchley, Tottenham and Finsbury Park.
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They drew up a rota and allegedly used Omar's flat in Southgate as a bomb factory, trying to boil the liquid into a more concentrated form on an electric stove.

The concentrated liquid was mixed with chapati flour to form the main charge and transferred into 6.25-litre clear plastic tubs. The detonator consisted of Triacetone Triperoxide (TATP), made by mixing nail varnish remover with hydrogen peroxide, which was put into a paper tube with a small lightbulb attached. Around the outside of each tub were taped about 80 screws, tacks, washers and nuts.

Wires from the detonator ran through the bottom of the men's rucksacks, through a hole in their clothing and into their pockets, where a connector for a 9v battery would have triggered the device.

Sounds easy enough to make. Probably easier than meth.

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