Bicycle bomb
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A bicycle bomb (or bike bomb) is an improvised explosive device that is placed on a bicycle.
History
[edit]United Kingdom
[edit]- The IRA used bicycle bombs twice in Northern Ireland and once at a British military facility in Germany.[1]
- On 25 August 1939 an IRA bicycle bomb exploded in Coventry, killing five people. The bomb had been left in the basket of a bicycle.[2]
- In 1979 a bomb exploded in package carried in a mailbag on a postman's bicycle in Streatley, Berkshire.
- 13 August 1994 Two bombs were planted in bags placed on bicycles in Brighton and Bognor Regis. The Bognor one detonated damaging shops but no casualties; the Brighton one was defused.[3]
- No information is available on the bomb detonated at a British military installation in Germany.
- On 8 August 1976, a member of the Parachute Regiment, Private Robert (Bob) Borucki, was killed by the explosion of a bomb planted inside a basket of a bicycle at Crossmaglen. Borucki is buried in the cemetery in the village of Wales, near Rotherham. A year later, a sangar named after the soldier was built on the spot.[4] The facility was removed in the early 2000s as part of the Belfast Agreement.
Sri Lanka
[edit]- On 30 August 2001 a time bomb tied to a bicycle exploded in the coastal town Kalmunai, killing two policemen and a bystander.
Pakistan
[edit]- A bicycle bomb exploded in a suburb of Quetta on 24 May 2004, wounding 15 police and militiamen traveling in a police truck.
Afghanistan
[edit]- In Kandahar in the main square at least 15 people were wounded by a bicycle bomb.[5]
- In February 2006 in the city of Kunduz as a result of a bicycle bomb two Afghans were killed and a German Bundeswehr soldier (from ISAF) was injured.[6]
- In Kabul on 10 October 2006, a bicycle bomb exploded near a police bus, wounding 11 police officers and civilians.[7]
Germany
[edit]- In 1989, Alfred Herrhausen, chairman of Deutsche Bank, was killed by a sophisticated bomb hidden in a parked bicycle.
Iraq
[edit]- In the Iraqi city of Baqubah according to the police at least 25 people were killed in a bicycle bombing on 26 June 2006.[8]
- August 2009, a bicycle bomb explodes near a restaurant in Baghdad killing two people.[citation needed]
India
[edit]- In the Indian city of Jaipur a series of seven bomb blasts took place within a span of twelve minutes on 13 May 2008, killing at least 90 people and injuring hundreds more.
- In Ahmedabad, largest city of the state of Gujarat, 45 were killed in a series of 17 blasts which took place within 1 hour on the evening of July 28, 2008.
- Twin bomb blasts at Dilsukhnagar ( Hyderabad )on Feb 21st,2013, 18 Killed and 40 Injured.
Russia
[edit]- On August 21, 2009, in Grozny, Chechnya, alleged suicide bombers approached police checkpoints on bicycles before blowing themselves up, killing and wounding several people.[9]
Gaza
[edit]On 19 May 2003 a 19 year-old Hamas militant strapped explosives to the back of his bicycle in the Gaza Strip and rode it alongside an Israeli Army vehicle, detonating it, killing himself and injuring 3 Israeli soldiers.[10]
Spain
[edit]On 28 June 2001, a parcel bomb planted by the ETA on a bicycle exploded in Madrid, injuring at least 10 people.[11]
In popular culture
[edit]- The 1955 novel The Quiet American by Graham Greene describes the use of bicycle bombs in Saigon.
- The movie Charlie Wilson's War mentions the need for bicycle bombs in the Afghanistan resistance of the USSR.
- There is a band called This Bike is a Pipe Bomb, and bicycles bearing the band's stickers have caused false evacuations at airports and universities.
References
[edit]- ^ Westminster, Department of the Official Report (Hansard), House of Commons. "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 8 Jul 1994". publications.parliament.uk.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo. The bicycle was purchased on HP from Halfords and modified in a terraced house in Coventry. The bomb was a liquid explosive, in a bottle concealed in a book carried on the bicycle. The remains of the bicycle are in the Coventry Police's "Black Museum". Schrapnel from the blast is reported to have travelled over 2 miles /countdown_390828_mon_01.shtml
- ^ "IRA confirms it planted seaside bicycle bombs: Police seek tourist". Independent.co.uk. 16 August 1994.
- ^ "Castles of the North, by Jonathan Olley (2003)" (PDF).
- ^ "CNN.com - Afghan bicycle bomb injures 15 - Dec. 6, 2003". www.cnn.com.
- ^ "Bicycle Bomb Kills Locals, Injures German Soldier - Germany- News and in-depth reporting from Berlin and beyond - DW - 22.02.2006". DW.COM.
- ^ "Bicycle bomb near police bus injures 11 in Kabul".
- ^ "CNN.com - Deadly bombs hit Iraqi markets - Jun 26, 2006". CNN. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
- ^ Police die in Grozny explosions. The BBC News. 21 August 2009
- ^ Cordesman, Anthony (2005). The Israeli-Palestinian War: Escalating to Nowhere. Greenwood. p. 198. ISBN 0275987582. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
- ^ "EL CORREO DIGITAL | POLÍTICA - Atentados de ETA desde la ruptura de la última tregua".
External links
[edit]- Afghan bicycle bomb injures 15 - CNN - December 6 2003
- Bicycle Bomb Kills Locals, Injures German Soldier - Deutsche Welle - February 22 2006
- Bicycle bomb near police bus injures 11 in Kabul - CBC News - October 10 2006
- Bicycle bombs and the fourth policeman John Adams explores the lack of evidence for existence of pipe bombs disguised as bicycles.