Londoners pay tribute to victims of 2005 bombings

LONDON - Survivors and relatives of the Tube and bus bombings in London five years ago paid tribute to the 52 victims Wednesday by laying flowers at their memorial and standing in silence at the sites where they perished.

The unofficial, low-key ceremonies marking the anniversary included a minute’s silence at the memorial of 52 steel pillars in Hyde Park and pilgrimages to the three Tube stations and one bus stop where they died.

The suicide attacks on three Underground trains and a bus on July 7, 2005, also left more than 700 injured.

Suicide bombers Mohammed Sidique Khan, 30, Shehzad Tanweer, 22, Hasib Hussain, 18, and Jermaine Lindsay, 19, detonated their devices within three minutes in the morning rush hour.

The government said that no official commemorations would be held at the request of relatives and survivors.

But wreaths were laid at the memorial, carrying personal tributes from Prime Minister David Cameron and Boris Johnson, mayor of London. Representatives of Muslim organisations also paid their respects.

However, some of those affected by the tragedy said they were angry at the lack of official commemorations.

Meanwhile, the woman who became the “face” of the attack has spoken publicly about her ordeal and her remarkable recovery for the first time.

Davinia Douglass, who was photographed clutching a gauze mask to cover her horrific facial burns, praised the “wonderful treatment” she had received to make an incredible recovery, both physical and and mental.

In pictures published Wednesday, the 29-year-old, who got married last year, revealed a face that bore absolutely no scars of the horrific injuries she suffered when a “ball of fire” swept through her Tube carriage.

“I went from being convinced that I would be seriously scarred for life and that my life would be ruined, to being hopeful that the medics who were looking after me would be able to put me back together as I had been before,” she told the Evening Standard.

“Fundamentally I am the same person, except I feel a lot stronger,” she added.