Touched by tragedy: Survivors and kin recall London bombings

Within three minutes of 8.50am, Tanweer detonated his bomb at Aldgate, Khan set his device off at Edgware Road and Lindsay blew himself up between King’s Cross and Russell Square.

Gill Hicks burst into tears as she hugged Pc Andrew Maxwell outside King’s Cross railway station in central London.

In 2006, the Australian designer presented PC Maxwell with an award for “extreme courage”.

Their impromptu reunion came a day ahead of memorial services to mark the 10th anniversary of the bombings.

Ms Putnam, from Cambridgeshire, said her overriding feeling will be sadness as she remembers the 52 people who were killed.

Now 24, she said: “All of us lost our innocence on that day, our naivety, the thought that “something like that could never happen to me” or even to London”.

“Our priority today is to allow the families and friends of the 52 innocent victims of 7/7 to pay tribute to the memory of their loved ones”, he said.

She will carry a floral tribute reading “Together” along with Imam Qari Asim, of Leeds’ largest mosque Makkah Masjid, t he Rev Bertrand Olivier, vicar of All-Hallows-by-the-Tower in the City of London, and Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner, from Movement for Reform Judaism.

“They are deluded, poisonous individuals and groups of people who want to bring chaos and mayhem to our country and overseas”, he said during the walk.

Ms Hicks, a peace campaigner who is now working to combat extremism, was the last person rescued alive after the London bombings which struck during the morning peak hour.

On Monday, Ms Hicks reconnected with one of her rescuers, tearfully hugging Police Constable Andy Maxwell who helped stretcher her out from the bombed train to an ambulance.

“Terrorists are recruiting young individuals from the Muslim community and as a result it is extremely important for Muslims to stand up and say no to hatred”. Sometimes I feel that people are so hell-bent on trying to make a point about terrorism not breaking us that they forget about all the people that got caught up in it. “Hatred and violence has no place in our society, our community and our globe”.

Arriving in Tavistock Square, they laid the wreath under a tree after praying together.

“To them, I was a precious human life – my rescue wasn’t dependent on my faith, my colour, my gender or wealth”.

He said: “We faith leaders believe that Britain is a multi-faith, multi-ethnic, multicultural society and by walking together we are sending out a very strong message that this is what we are proud of and this is what Britain is today”.