Bereaved brother Robert Webb hits out at MI5's 7/7 failures

[TonyGosling]

Brother hits out at MI5’s 7/7 failures
by James McCarthy, South Wales Echo - May 7 2011
A CARDIFF man whose sister was killed in the July 7 bombings has joined the coroner in criticising the performance of the security services.
MI5’s failure to show a clear photograph of the 7/7 ringleader to a key informant was highlighted yesterday by Lady Justice Hallett as she announced her findings about the attacks.
She said the 52 victims of the July 2005 London bombings were unlawfully killed by four Muslim extremists and rejected claims that security agency failings caused their deaths.
But she strongly criticised the “dreadful” editing by MI5, of a sharp colour picture of 7/7 plot leader Mohammed Sidique Khan and his number two Shehzad Tanweer taken at a motorway service station in February 2004.
The cropped grainy black-and-white image of Khan was meant to be shown to al-Qaeda supergrass Mohammed Junaid Babar, who had met the British jihadist at a terrorist training camp in Pakistan. But the picture was never put in front of Babar, apparently because its quality was so poor.
Robert Webb of Gabalfa lost his 29-year-old sister Laura in the blast at Edgware Road tube station.
Robert, who works for Monmouthshire County Council, said: “It is very comprehensive, as I would have expected, she ran a very comprehensive inquest. But I remain concerned about the security service failings.
“I don’t want to bang on about MI5 being rubbish because they do a good job, but it is quite clear there were failings. She has concluded that even if the security services had operated better the attacks could not have been prevented and I am not so sure about that.
“If you give a dodgy photo to (people) they are not going to recognise them. But if you give a good quality photo – which actually existed – then there is a better chance they will.”
He criticised the security services’ initial assessment of the bombers as “clean skins” when they were known to them.
Calling the bombings an “unspeakable evil”, he praised witnesses who had helped victims.
He said: “There were incredible stories of humanity, even if they were just people lending a shoulder to help someone get out of a carriage.
“There were four bombers but there were infinitely more carrying out incredible acts of humanity.”
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/cardiffonline/cardiff-news/2011/05/07/bro ther-hits-out-at-mi5-s-7-7-failures-91466-28649717/