muslims caught with chemical bomb in London:
Raid police hunt chemical device
The search is expected to take several days
news.bbc.co.uk
Scene of raid
Police are hunting for a chemical device after anti-terror officers carried out an armed raid that led to two arrests and a man being shot.
The 23-year-old suspect shot during the terrorism operation in Forest Gate, East London, is recovering in hospital under armed guard.
His brother, 20, is being held at Paddington Green police station.
Security sources told the BBC they had had intelligence there was a "viable" chemical device in the house.
They believe something harmful and toxic could still be at the property.
According to BBC Home Affairs correspondent Margaret Gilmore they do not believe it would be a sophisticated bomb, but a homemade device.
POLICE SHOOTING GUIDELINES
Police officers can shoot "to stop an imminent threat to life"
A firearms officer should identify themselves and give an oral warning of intent to shoot
Officers should not fire warning shots except in "most serious and exceptional" circumstances
Shots should be aimed at the central body mass
The Operation Kratos [shoot-to-kill] policy allows officers to shoot at the head without warning if they believe the suspect may detonate a bomb
Kratos does not require police to see a "suicide jacket" before opening fire
Profile: The IPCC
The BBC has learned that the suspects are Abdul Kahar, who was shot, and Abdul Koyar, who are both of Bangladeshi origin.
A single shot was fired, according to the Independent Police Complaints Commission, which will continue to investigate over the weekend.
One line of inquiry is that there was a struggle with police and a gun went off accidentally, says BBC home affairs correspondent Danny Shaw.
The raid was not carried out under Operation Kratos, the shoot-to-kill policy, Scotland Yard said.
A family from an adjoining house detained by police after the raid later released a statement saying they were "in no way involved in any terrorist activity".
They also claimed they were physically assaulted and were consulting lawyers over possible action.
The statement said: "We would like to express our deep shock and anger at the operation that took place.
"My family members and I were physically assaulted. I received serious head injuries that required hospital treatment."
Some officers wore bio-chemical suits and carried gas masks in the search of the terraced house in Lansdown Road.
Air exclusion zone
The go-ahead for the raid came after discussions between MI5, the anti-terrorist branch, and bio-chemical experts from the Health Protection Agency which advises on the potential health risks.
An air exclusion zone was imposed around the scene, banning aircraft from flying below 2,500ft above the site.
But local residents were not evacuated, either because the threat of explosions was not deemed serious enough or police did not want to alert the suspects.
See an aerial view of the area surrounding the raided house
Enlarge Image
Friday's operation was not linked to the London bombings of July 2005, police have said.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of the Met's anti-terror branch, said the operation was planned in response to "specific intelligence".
"Because of the very specific nature of the intelligence we planned an operation that was designed to mitigate any threat to the public either from firearms or from hazardous substances," he said.
He said the purpose of the raid was to prove or disprove intelligence they had received.
Surveillance operation
BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel Sandford described it as the most significant anti-terror operation this year.
Mr Kahar was arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism as he was being treated at the Royal London hospital.
Officers from M15 had been watching a group of British young people of Bangladeshi origin for weeks, Margaret Gilmore said.
Their e-mails, phone calls and movements were logged and the suspicion was they were planning a terrorist attack in the UK.
Intelligence officers did not link them with any other group of suspects but thought they were acting alone.
She said by Thursday they were convinced there could be a bomb in the East London house.
Roads closed
The search of the premises is expected to take several days.
A tent has been set up outside the property, a two-storey screen has been erected around the building and neighbouring roads are closed.
Several people in the house at the time of the raid were moved to other premises. They have not been arrested.
One eyewitness said officers smashed a window to gain access
The IPCC said it would use its own investigators to "examine the circumstances surrounding the discharge of a police firearm".
It investigated the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes by police at Stockwell Tube station, the day after the failed 21 July bombings.
In the case of Mr Menezes, officers were operating under the shoot-to-kill policy Operation Kratos.
Residents said Forest Gate was a typical east London "mixed" community with a large number of Bengali and Pakistani families, along with a recent influx of Eastern Europeans.
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