Boris Johnson lays floral tribute for 7/7 victims as he says London will 'never forget' on 15th anniversary of terror attack

Boris Johnson today said London would never forget the 7/7 bombings as he and other leading figure lay floral tributes to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the tragedy.

A series of co-ordinated explosions ripped through three London Underground trains and a double-decker bus on July 7 2005, killing 52 people, as well as the bombers, and injuring more than 700 people.

On Tuesday morning, the Prime Minister placed flowers at the Hyde Park memorial, alongside a handwritten note. He also spoke in a video that was created to replace memorial events that had to be cancelled because of the pandemic.

"No one who is in London on the 7 July, 2005, will ever forget what they experienced that day," said Mr Johnson in the video.

In the note left alongside the flowers, he added: "We grieve for those who were lost. We remember those who were injured. We defy those who would defy us."

The full 30-minute film, due to be published at midday today, also included a message from the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

Mr Khan said: "The indiscriminate targeting of Londoners on our public transport system was an act of unspeakable evil."

He added: “Our capital will never forget the terrible events of that day, and my thoughts are with all those whose lives were changed forever.

“As we mark 15 years since the attack on our city, I want again to pay tribute to the heroic efforts of our emergency services and transport workers, who ran towards danger to save lives, on that awful day."

Mr Khan also laid a wreath at the memorial at 8.50am – the time the first bomb went off. He left a message which read: “Fifteen years have passed, but the 52 innocent people who lost their lives on 7/7 remain in our hearts.

“Those who seek to divide our communities and destroy our way of life will never, ever succeed."

Met Commissioner Cressida Dick, British Transport Police Chief Constable Paul Crowther, City of London Police Commissioner Ian Dyson and Transport for London (TfL) Commissioner Mike Brown were also among the group who paid tribute to the victims at that time.

A second group, including London Fire Brigade Commissioner Andy Roe and London Ambulance Service chief executive Garrett Emmerson, will lay wreaths at 9.47am – when the bomb on the bus exploded in Tavistock Square.

Mr Brown said: “We will never forget those innocent victims who lost their lives in the most tragic circumstances 15 years ago.

“We stand united with our colleagues from the emergency services and the city as a whole in remembering them today.

“The resilience of great world cities like ours continues to be tested but Londoners have shown time and time again that our strength lies in our diversity, resourcefulness and spirit of togetherness.”

The film features many of the elements that would take place at the 7/7 Memorial in Hyde Park. It includes short speeches from those affected by the atrocity, reading of the names of those killed, music from the London International Gospel Choir and the laying of flowers at the memorial.

The video is being made available on YouTube and Vimeo from 12pm today, to coincide with the time the annual ceremony would have taken place in Hyde Park.

Read more

Sadiq Khan pays tribute on 15th anniversary of 7/7 London bombings