Bombed shop owner fears for the future

Ihsan, whose brother Inam, 29, and colleague John Jefferies, 31, were working in the shop when they were killed in the 1996 blast, has written to the estate owner CIT Group expressing his concerns.

He said: "I heard about Tesco coming here and just thought, 'You can't do this.' We've been here as a family operation for the last 20 years and we want to be here for another 20.

"The recession's been tough on us. I've dipped into my pocket to help support the shop, but I did that because I cannot lose it. Tesco coming here would force me out of the area."

Neither Tesco or CIT Group would comment on the plans and no application has been made to Tower Hamlets council.

However, Ihsan is convinced it is on the horizon and says it will be a kick in the teeth to the victims of the bombing as the South Quay area cannot support two convenience stores.

He said: "We have a plaque here to remember my brother and John but this shop is the real memorial.

"I was asked if I wanted to leave the area after the bomb, but I could not. It was the dying wish of my father, who died five months after Inam, that the shop should remain at South Quay."

When Ihsan and Inam opened the Newstop 2000 store together in 1989, it was their second newsagent following one at Fleet Street.

It was on the recommendation of Telegraph editor Max Hastings that the brothers decided to move to South Quay in the late '80s and it represented a great move for the brothers.

Ihsan said: "My brother and I thought about Canary Wharf but it wasn't ready, so we settled on South Quay and it was a great success.

"We turned it into a profit inside three weeks and we've been here through the good and bad times."

Campaigner for the Wharf victims of the bomb Jonathan Ganesh, who was friends with both Imam and John, said: "It would be incredibly sad to lose the shop, which stands as an example of courage under extreme pressure."