British police arrest nine under anti-terror laws

LONDON - Anti-terrorist officers arrested nine men in raids early Thursday in connection with the botched July 21 attacks on London's transit system, bringing to 20 the number of people police have in custody, including one of the alleged bombers.

Scotland Yard police headquarters said the nine men were arrested under the Terrorism Act at two properties in the neighborhood of Tooting, in south London.

The arrests follow a significant breakthrough on Wednesday, when authorities in the central England city of Birmingham arrested one of the four men suspected of carrying out the failed attacks -- Yasin Hassan Omar, 24. He was being held Thursday at a top-security police station in London.

The three other bombers suspected of carrying out last week's attacks were still on the run, police said.

Peter Clarke, the head of London's police anti-terrorist unit, called Omar's arrest "an important development in the investigation." But he warned that the three remaining bombers still presented a danger.

Security upped for anniversary of attacks
Security was tight at many subway stations in central London Thursday -- the three-week anniversary of the July 7 attacks on three subway trains and a bus that killed 56 people, including the four suicide bombers. Thursday was also the one-week anniversary of the failed July 21 attacks.

Darren Staples / Reuters Residents in Birmingham, central England, are evacuated Wednesday as suspected bomber Yasin Hassan Omar is arrested and his home is raided.

London's chief policeman warned on Thursday there could be more cells of would-be bombers at large.

"It does remain possible that those at large will strike again. It does also remain possible that there are other cells that are capable and intent on striking again," Ian Blair told a police authority meeting.

"They are not amateurs. They made one mistake and we are very lucky," he added of the July 21 attackers.

Residents in Tooting said police arrested three Turkish men from a fast food restaurant selling halal burgers. Halal is meat from a herbivore slaughtered in a humane way -- as Islam requires.

Raja Kumar, who runs a 24-hour convenience store next to the restaurant, said dozens of officers raided the property at 4:30 a.m.

"Police said to us, 'Stay inside,' and then they took away three people from the shop, a man aged about 45 called Ali who has been living there for two years and two younger men aged about 28 and 26," he said.

Six other men were arrested from a property in nearby Garratt Terrace, a street opposite the Tooting Broadway subway station.

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