On 3rd June 2017, Khuram Shazad Butt, Rachid Redouane and Youssef Zaghba deliberately drove a van into pedestrians on London Bridge.
They crashed on Borough High Street, just South of the River Thames, before entering Borough Market and stabbing citizens outside pubs and restaurants
Eight civilians died.
Many more were injured.
The three attackers were shot dead by police at the scene.
Islamic State (ISIS) claimed responsibility.
I was there.
I recorded this film on Easter Sunday, 31st March 2024.
Just over a week before, on 22nd March, four gunmen carried out a mass shooting at the Crocus City Hall music venue in Moscow Oblast, Russia. 145 people were killed and over 500 injured. ISIS, once again, claimed responsibility.
I hadn’t intended to record the film, but was in the area working on another project and felt motivated by the attack in Russia to say a few words about my own experience.
In all honesty, I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to release it.
Partly, I’m sure, it’s down to the traumatic nature of what happened. As well as the controversy surrounding the topic: Islamic extremism, bad actors, intelligence agencies, and the ever-present possibility of false flag attacks by the British state against its own citizens.
The researchers amongst you will note my recollection of the event, recorded without preparation, includes an important error: I say we got to the bridge at around 9.20PM. In reality, we must have arrived there an hour later, at around 10.20PM. Just as the first responders arrived.
This tells me two things:
We were running much, much later than I remembered. We were supposed to be in Elephant and Castle at 9PM.
There’s a reason why even eye-witness accounts require independent verification, especially when a significant amount of time has passed.
Putting that aside, in light of the brutal knife attack in Germany two weeks ago which saw a police officer and the Islamic extremist who attacked him lose their lives, it feels like an appropriate moment to share this message.
Peace and love.
Ben Rubin
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A Terror Attack on London Bridge