A survivor of the IRA bombing of the Harrods department store in London 40 years ago has said “victims suffered in silence” while seeking compensation from the UK Government.
Six people were killed and 90 injured when a car bomb ripped through the Hans Crescent entrance to the busy store on December 17 1983.
At 12.45pm the IRA sent a warning that the bomb was imminent, but the area was not evacuated and it exploded at 1.30pm.
Three Metropolitan Police officers, Inspector Stephen Dodd, 34, Sergeant Noel Lane, 28, and Pc Jane Arbuthnot 22, were killed.
Three members of the public, Kenneth Salvesen, 28, Jasmine Cochrane Patrick, 25, and Philip Geddes, 25, were also killed.
Speaking to the PA news agency to mark the 40th anniversary of the bombing, Mina Jadeja said she was “lucky to survive”.
She said the attack was a “life-changing” experience which left her with severe injuries, chronic pain and affected her working life.
Ms Jadeja was going to Harrods with her sister and nephews that afternoon after promising to buy them presents before she was due to move overseas for work in the new year.
After seeing Father Christmas at the store, the family cut through Hans Crescent to avoid the busy main road outside Harrods.
Ms Jadeja remembers laughing and joking with the boys as they walked along the road.
But suddenly, the car bomb exploded and caused chaos on the streets.
“Initially there was a lot of confusion, a lot of smoke, we couldn’t see where we were going.
“There was a lot of glass from the windows of the Harrods shop flying around everywhere as well.”
She said her first instinct was to protect and cover up her youngest nephew, shielding him from the debris.
“Then I felt wet and I realised it was blood coming out of my neck, back and right hand. I was bleeding quite badly and panic set in because I couldn’t see and I was confused about the direction I needed to go.”
The fear was compounded as she discovered she was no longer with her sister or eldest nephew.
Eventually, after walking in what she believed was the right direction, she encountered some medical students.
“I don’t remember much after that to be honest, I think I must have passed out. The next thing I woke up in St Thomas’ hospital with my sister on my side bed and my two nephews on the opposite bed.”
Ms Jadeja said her right arm was “completely shattered” and there was shrapnel from the car in her elbow.
Her sister was also very badly injured and she said her eldest nephew was very affected by the bombing.
“Luckily my youngest nephew wasn’t hurt at all because I covered him up. But he got the most attention because Charles and Lady Diana came to see him. He thought he was quite the adventurer and taking it in his stride.”
She said she was not aware of the conflict in Northern Ireland at the time and was “shocked” to learn it was an IRA bombing.
“I thought ‘Who are they, why would they want to hurt us?'”
She feels the Harrods incident has not received enough discussion.
Former Libyan leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi armed the IRA with the powerful Semtex plastic explosive used in multiple Troubles bombings, including the 1983 Harrods attack, the Remembrance Day ceremony in Enniskillen in 1987, Warrington in 1993 and London’s Docklands in 1996.
Victims want the current Libyan authorities to pay compensation but, given the unlikelihood of that happening in the short term, they have urged the Government to instead use the billions of pounds of assets linked to the toppled Gaddafi regime which were frozen in the UK in 2011 under UN sanctions.
During an inquiry into Government support for UK victims of IRA attacks that used Gaddafi-supplied weapons, Ms Jadeja previously complained that the UK Government was not as effective as the US Government in seeking compensation for victims of terrorism.
A 2021 report on the matter compiled by the Foreign Office has remained confidential.
On the 40th anniversary, she still feels the UK “put money in front of lives” by prioritising trade relations with Libya at the time.
“We should have been compensated, but we got nothing. We suffered in silence, basically. It has cost a lot in emotional suffering.”
Asked about the pursuit of justice for the attack, Ms Jadeja said: “Nobody will be punished for this attack and it was horrendous.
“They got away scot-free, basically, no-one is answerable for this.
“They wanted to get attention for their cause and they got it at the cost of normal citizens’ lives.”
Ms Jadeja said that groups like the South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF) continue to seek justice in the decades since the attack: “Their fight for justice is very necessary for victims.”
SEFF director Kenny Donaldson said: “We support a number of the bereaved and injured survivors of the Harrods’ bomb and have awareness of others also directly impacted.
“The Harrods bomb was a brutal attack carried out in the days running up to Christmas when families and individuals had their guard most down and were engaging in Christmas cheer.
“Those six individuals murdered and circa 90 injured came from both policing and civilian backgrounds and also across diverse ethnic, nationality and religious backgrounds.
“Just 24 hours earlier the Provisional IRA murdered two members of the Irish state’s security forces in County Leitrim, Republic of Ireland – Garda Recruit Gary Sheehan and Patrick Kelly – again illustrating that their terror campaign was no respecter of borders, murders and maiming of people committed across these islands and also in mainland Europe.
“On this milestone 40th anniversary our thoughts and prayers are with all innocents impacted by the events of Harrods.”