Police 'should apologise' for Forest Gate raid

The Metropolitan Police should apologise to the families involved in the Forest Gate anti-terrorism raid last June, the Independent Police Complaints Commission has said.

The IPCC examined more than 150 complaints from 11 members of the two houses in Lansdown Road raided by police last June.

Police were searching for a suspected chemical bomb, but no such device was found during the searches.

Two men - brothers Mohammed Abdul Kahar, 23 and Abul Koyair, 20 - were arrested, but were released without charge a week later. Mr Kahar was shot in the shoulder during the raid.

The IPCC said that a small number of complaints, involving the treatment of those in custody, were upheld. One police officer received a written warning for one allegation of neglect.

The IPCC also said that people not arrested at the scene should not have been taken to a police station, saying that this caused "unnecessary anxiety and confusion".

The watchdog admitted that the police tactics used in the operation were "forceful and aggressive", but said that this was "inevitable" because of the threat that police genuinely thought they were facing.

However, the IPCC said that police could and should have changed their response much sooner once they were in control of the situation.

The IPCC also said police had "no choice" but to act on the intelligence, even though it was subsequently found to be wrong.

IPCC Commissioner Deborah Glass said: "I have concluded that the police were right to take no chances with public safety. But they were wrong not to have planned better for the intelligence being wrong.

"We upheld a small number of complaints, involving treatment in custody. We did not uphold any complaints about excessive force although there is no doubt that some of the residents were injured by police actions.

"I know that some people will feel very strongly that individual officers should be disciplined. However, after much thought, I have concluded that the level of force has to be judged in the light of the officers belief that they were facing an extreme lethal threat - not just to themselves but to the public and indeed to the occupants of the houses themselves.

"None of this should minimise the deep and understandable sense of grievance felt by all those affected by what must have been a terrifying experience.

"That police did not find an explosive device does not mean they were wrong to have launched the raid. But where as a result of a high profile operation innocent people are injured or publicly branded as terrorists, the police should make an equally high profile public apology."

The Metropolitan Police Authority issued a statement following the release of the IPCC's report. It said: "We along with the Metropolitan Police Service have always recognised the need to work with our communities and keep them informed of all relevant and available information to ensure they understand the reasons for police action and operations.

"We will shortly be publishing the findings of our own scrutiny into Metropolitan Police media handling and communications, which we initiated specifically following the Forest Gate operation."

This IPCC report was the second stage of an investigation into the Forest Gate raid. The first report, concerning the shooting of Mr Kahar, ruled that the shooting was an accident as a result of contact on a narrow staircase between the police officer and Mr Kahar.

(KMcA)