Police track suspects plotting fresh London attack

LONDON, Thursday (AFP) - Anti-terrorist police are tracking new groups, which may be plotting further attacks on London, a senior police officer told a newspaper in an interview published on Thursday.

Andy Hayman, assistant commissioner of London's Metropolitan Police, said none of the potential suspects were linked to the bombings in the British capital on July 7 or the failed attack two week later.

"I don't want to scaremonger but it has to be said, when you look around the world and at the prominence of London, that the threat is real," said Hayman, who is in overall charge of anti-terrorist operations in London.

Hayman told the Guardian newspaper that detectives at Scotland Yard were actively pursuing "other lines of investigation".

"We always remain active in covert operations. We have a number of people who are of interest," he said. "London is an iconic site as a location for another terrorist attack. We have to be vigilant but you can't predict where or how or when they will try."

Fifty-six people were killed, including four presumed Islamist suicide bombers, in a co-ordinated attack on three subway trains and a double-decker bus on July 7.

Hayman told the Guardian that police were finding it difficult to gain the trust of Britain's Muslim community. "There has been progress but starting from a regrettably low baseline. We have close links with the Muslim community but the next step is getting them to share information," he said.

"I fully understand how difficult that is, the repercussions of arrests and so on, but that has to be weighed against the mass loss of life that could result from further atrocities."