Canary Wharf IRA bomb’ plaque unveiled—14 years on

A MEMORIAL plaque has been unveiled in East London to commemorate two killed and 39 injured by the IRA Canary Wharf bombing almost 14 years ago. Two survivors returned for the unveiling at South Quay DLR station, just 80 yards from the bomb that exploded in 1996

By Mike Brooke Picture: Joe Lord

A MEMORIAL plaque has been unveiled in East London to commemorate the two men killed and 39 injured by the IRA Canary Wharf bombing almost 14 years ago.

Two of the survivors injured by the blast joined Tower Hamlets Mayor Ahmed Omer at yesterday’s unveiling at South Quay DLR station, just 80 yards from the bomb that exploded in a lorry 7pm on February 9, 1996.

Two workers in a newsagent’s directly opposite, Inan Bashir and John Jefferies, were killed in the blast.

Security guard Jonathan Ganesh, who was buried under the rubble, returned yesterday with fellow survivor Tony Sharp for the unveiling.

Mr Sharp, who has been involved in memorial events since the first anniversary of the bombing, said: “Images from the aftermath are still shown on the news because it was obviously a really significant event. It’s something that should be remembered because of the two people who were tragically killed.”

Mr Ganesh has been campaigning in a different direction to get compensation from Libya which supplied the Semtex explosives to the IRA. He was one of the group of IRA victims and survivors from all overt the UK which organised a delegation of MPs to meet Libya’s leader Colonel Gaddafi in October.

The 1996 Canary Wharf bombing caused extensive damage to South Quay station and destroyed a neighbouring six-storey office block. It also shattered windows on Millwall’s Barkantine estate close by, injuring families.