London blasts: My agony, by Marie Fatayi-Williams

By Emmanuel Aziken & Austin Ogwuda Posted to the Web: Tuesday, July 12, 2005

LONDON — THE distraught mother of a Nigerian, Anthony Fatayi-Williams, who has been missing since last week’s terror bomb attacks in London, yesterday, spoke of her agony at not hearing from him for the fifth day running.

Mrs Marie Fatayi-Williams broke down as she delivered a powerful speech near the scene of the bomb blast in Tavistock Square. Peace, she said, could not be found through terrorism.

Meanwhile, the names of the first two victims to be identified from the dozens killed in the bomb blasts were released yesterday. Anthony, 26, is believed to have taken a bus to work on Thursday after stopping to help Tube passengers caught up in the confusion. His mobile phone records showed that he contacted his employer, oil group AMEC, at 9.41a.m that fateful morning that he might be late in getting to work. There are fears he then joined the No 30 bus, which exploded at 0947. No word has been heard from him since.

Mrs Fatayi-Williams who flew into London from Nigeria in the hope of finding Tony said: “How many tears shall we cry? How many mothers’ hearts shall be maimed? My heart is maimed at this moment. I pray I will see my son, Anthony.”

She vowed to fight to protect her son’s values and memory: “I want to protect him. I’m his mother. I will fight till I die to protect his value and to protect his memory.

“Innocent blood will always cry to God Almighty for reparation. How much blood must be spilled?”

Holding up a photograph of her son, Mrs Fatayi-Williams said: “This is Anthony, Anthony Fatayi-Williams, my son, 26 years old. He is missing and we fear he was in the bus that exploded here on Thursday.”

Holding back the tears, she said: “My only son, the head of my family. In African society, we hold on to sons. He has dreams and hopes and I, his mother, must fight to protect them.”This is now the fifth day, five days on, five days on, and we are waiting to know what happened to him and I, his mother, I need to know what happened to Anthony.”

She added that Anthony’s younger sisters, Loretta, who has just sat her GCSEs, and Aisha, also needed to know what had happened to the former public school boy — a pupil at Sevenoaks School — who now works in mergers and acquisitions for Amec.In an emotional plea to the bombers, Mrs Fatayi-Williams said: “Now New York, now Madrid, now London. There has been widespread slaughter of innocent people.

There have been streams of tears, innocent tears. There have been rivers of blood, innocent blood. People going in the morning to find their livelihood, death in the noontime on the highways and streets. They are not warriors. Which cause has been served? Certainly not the cause of God and the cause of Allah because God Almighty gives life and is full of mercy. Anyone who has been misled to believe that, by killing innocent people, that he or she is serving God should think again because it’s not true.

"Terrorism is not the way, terrorism is not the way. It doesn’t beget peace. We can’t deliver peace by terrorism, never can we deliver peace by killing people.” She added that those throughout history who had “changed the world” had done so through peaceful means.

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Hundreds attend Bomb victim's funeral

Last Modified: 23 Jul 2005 - Source: ITN

Hundreds of family and friends of London bomb victim Anthony Fatayi-Williams have filled Westminster Cathedral to pay tribute to him.

Bishop Alan Hopes led the funeral service which was attended by his family who had flown in from Nigeria.

The 26-year-old British-born oil executive died on the No 30 bus which was ripped apart by a suicide bomber in Tavistock Square on July 7.

Mr Fatayi-Williams lived in Hendon, north-west London, and worked for oil firm Amec in Old Street.

He was on his way to work when he was caught in the explosion and had phoned only moments before he died to say he was going to be late.

He was last seen by a friend at Camden tube station and had been planning to travel to King's Cross but had been forced to change on to the bus amid the chaos of the explosions.

His father, Dr Alan Adebayo Fatayi-Williams and his Catholic mother, Marie Fatayi-Williams paid tribute to their only son, along with his sisters Loretta, 16, and Aisha, 13.

They launched the Anthony Fatayi-Williams Foundation for Peace and Conflict Resolution in his honour.

His father said: "We, Anthony's parents, have resolved to lend ourselves and our voice to finding peaceful ways to overcome violence and terror.

"Anthony was a peace-loving person, and his values we will strive to immortalise."

His mother Marie said she would hold on to her memories of Anthony and cherish them forever.

She sang a tribute to her son and spoke a few words in French - the language she and Anthony used to communicate in secret.

Tom Ikimi Junior, Anthony's cousin, told the gathering: "Tears and sadness don't do anything for Anthony at this point.

"Only with joy and happiness should he be remembered." channel4.com/news