An explosive device allegedly planted by a Sunbury teenager on a packed train was designed to cause "maximum carnage", a court heard on Wednesday (March 7).

Ahmed Hassan Mohammed Ali, 18, of Cavendish Road, Sunbury, has been charged with planting a bomb on a Tube train at Parsons Green.

The teenager has denied charges of attempted murder and using the chemical compound TATP to cause an explosion likely to endanger life.

In total, 29 people were hurt when an improvised explosive device, allegedly planted in a bucket, was detonated on the train on September 15 2017.

At the start of Ahmed Hassan's trial at the Old Bailey on Wednesday (March 7), Prosecutor Alison Morgan described the moment the explosion took place on the packed train and showed jurors CCTV footage of the incident.

"On Friday September 15 2017, shortly before 8.20am, an improvised explosive device partially detonated on a District Line Tube train very shortly after it had arrived into Parsons Green station," she said.

"It was rush hour and the train was crowded.

"The partial explosion created a large fireball. Some in the carriage sustained burns. Many ran in fear and panic.

Ahmed Hassan Mohammed Ali is accused of planting a bomb on a District Line train which partially exploded at Parsons Green station

"They were fortunate. Those in close proximity may well have been killed."

She went on to say that the explosive device was loaded with pieces of shrapnel designed to cause "maximum carnage".

"The bucket containing the device had been loaded with pieces of shrapnel, designed to be propelled out of the device during the explosion, causing maximum harm and carnage to those in the surrounding area," she said.

The court later heard how on the day of the attack, Ahmed Hassan set the timer on the explosive device in a toilet at Wimbledon station before boarding the District Line train.

"The prosecution allege the steps that he took must have been planned in advance. He took himself to the privacy of a toilet, which provided the defendant with the opportunity to set the timer on that device," Alison Morgan said.

The device detonated at Parsons Green station just two minutes after Ahmed Hassan left the train at Putney Bridge Station.

Alison Morgan then read out eyewitness accounts of the explosion from passengers who were on board the train at the time.

One witness “heard a massive bang followed by shards of glass flying through the air and then flames.”


'They trained us on how to kill'

Prosecutor Alison Morgan went on to say that Ahmed Hassan's claim for asylum in the UK was based on his assertion that he was in fear of Islamic State as a result of what happened to him in Iraq.

She then read out an account of a Home Office immigration interview carried out in January 18 2016.

When asked if he had previous training with ISIS during the interview, Ahmed Hassan said: "They trained us on how to kill. It was all religious based."

The scene of a raid in Cavendish Road, Sunbury, in the aftermath of the Parsons Green Tube terror incident

In a later part of the same interview, Ahmed Hassan said he was taken by force by ISIS.

Alison Morgan said: "Ahmed Hassan replied that he was taken by force by ISIS and if he did not go (with them) they would have killed his uncle and brother."

The trial continues.