Menezes Ops Room: The diary

By Dominic Casciani BBC News

It was here that the hunt for the failed 21 July bombers was co-ordinated.

Inside, one officer played the role of "loggist" - recording by hand everything that was going on and every decision that commanders made.

READ THE DOCUMENT Loggist's diary [309KB] Most computers will open this document automatically, but you may need Adobe Reader Download the reader here

When Mr de Menezes left home that morning, the "grey team" surveillance officers followed him.

The diary says they had "control" of him, but at this early stage they were not sure whether he was definitely their target - would-be bomber Hussain Osman.

By the time the Brazilian reached Brixton Tube station, the officers felt his behaviour was giving cause for concern.

The critical issue for Scotland Yard was how to stop this man. Surveillance officers were armed for their own safety, but were not trained to confront a potential suicide bomber. In the Ops Room, Commander Cressida Dick said SO19, the specialist firearms officers, must get to the scene and step in.

But nobody was sure where the firearms officers were. They should have been outside the flat but were not there in time to stop him jumping on a bus.

The Ops Room, fearing the target was now heading for Stockwell Tube, asked the senior firearms commander on the ground to clarify what was going on.

Minutes later, at 1000 BST, it was clear that officers were convinced their target was heading for the Underground. If he was one of the bombers, he would have to be stopped.

The log shows Commander Dick gave a specific order: If the identification is good - stop him.

Time was running out. Commander Dick again insisted that SO19 must stop the target. But the loggist recorded that they were still not at the station - and the subject was now on the escalators.

Suddenly, at 1004 BST, she was forced to change the strategy. SO12, the lightly-armed surveillance officers, had no choice but to stop the man themselves.

Then seconds later, Commander Dick was informed that SO19 officers had arrived and declared State Red, meaning they were taking over and preparing to make a "hard stop".

As the firearms teams rushed to the platform, officers briefed Commander Dick that everything was "all right" upstairs - but nobody knew what was going on downstairs.

At 1008 BST the call came in: - a man had been shot.

Within minutes, Cressida Dick offered to step back as the Designated Senior Officer with responsibility for Operation Kratos, the Met's policies to shoot a suicide bomber without warning:

"This is an important decision in the light of what has happened," she wrote later that evening in the formal typed version of her decision log. "NOT appropriate for me to make it ... this has major implications potentially for the Metropolitan Police Service and London." Her superiors backed her and asked her to stay in charge of the operation room.

Very soon afterwards, the facts began to emerge.

There was still an "urgent need" for the suspected bombers to be arrested - but the man killed at Stockwell did not seem to be the man the suspect. Shortly after 5.30pm, the following was handwritten in the operation room notes:

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