Christians Under Attack

• Should we change our lives in the face of terrorism?
• Video: London reacts to news | Police statement
• Con Coughlin: Car bomb is al-Qa'eda's greeting to Brown
• Audio: Scotland Yard on how the bomb was defused
• Brown: Remain vigilant | Video: On the scene
• Bravery | Crying wolf? | Witnessed by idiots?

Police have found a second car bomb in London’s West End, it has emerged.

	Fleet Street was cleared while police investigated suspect vehicle

Sources revealed that officers examining a Mercedes found in an underground car park off Park Lane this afternoon discovered an explosive device inside.

It has not been disclosed what sort of bomb was found, but the revelation comes just hours after bomb disposal experts defused a device set to detonate petrol, gas cylinders and nails in a car outside the packed Tiger Tiger nightclub in The Haymarket.

It is thought the second car was found parked illegally in the West End by traffic wardens in the early hours of this morning. It was then towed to the pound - located in the car park - but left outside in the public area when staff reported that it smelt of fuel.

Earlier this afternoon Park Lane was sealed off and Hyde Park evacuated after bomb experts were called in to examine the car.

Security alerts caused by the searches brought much of London to a standstill.

Later, police cordoned off a 400m-stretch of Fleet Street between Fetter Lane and Ludgate Circus, in the heart of London's financial district, as they investigated a suspect vehicle.

Two hours later, a spokesman for City of London police said the area had been made safe, but would not confirm whether police had found anything.

Jacqui Smith, the new Home Secretary, called an emergency meeting of top officials this morning, calling the attempted attack in The Haymarket "international terrorism."

She said: "We are currently facing the most severe and sustained threat to our security from international terrorism.

	The car with the bomb was parked near Piccadilly Circus

"This latest incident reinforces the need for the public to remain vigilant and alert to the threat we face at all times.

Similarities between the car bomb and Iraqi bomb plots have been highlighted by a British security official, according to the Associated Press.

The head of Scotland Yard's counter-terrorism command, Peter Clarke, said police were alerted to a silver Mercedes car by an ambulance crew who noticed smoke inside it. The crew had been called to the scene just before 1.30am for an injury at a nearby nightclub.

Officers inspecting the car found 60 litres of petrol on the back seat, gas cylinders and containers holding nails inside, which could have caused "significant injury or loss of life". The bomb was manually defused.

A witness said the large silver saloon car was being driven "erratically" before crashing into bins and that the driver then ran off.

Mr Clarke said that some aspects of today's bomb attempt "resonated with previous plots" and mentioned nightclubs as a potential target.

But he also said detectives are keeping "an entirely open mind" as to who is responsible and called on the public to remain vigilant.

Police have removed the car from the scene and are studying CCTV footage for clues.

	Where the device was found in the West End

The Associated Press reported an anonymous official saying MI5 would examine possible connections between the incident and at least two similar foiled plots.

One of these is the thwarted attempt to use limousines packed with gas canisters to attack targets in London and New York.

Dhiren Barot and members of his gang were jailed for a combined total of 136 years for the plot earlier this month.

A Whitehall source reportedly said: "It is entirely possible. There are various things - it is outside a nightclub, it is a vehicle-borne device, it is close to the anniversary of the July 7 attacks."

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the incident reminds us that Britain faces "a serious and continuous threat" and the public "need to be alert" at all times.