The second anniversary of the 7 July London suicide bombings which killed 52 people has been marked with a ceremony at a memorial garden to the victims.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown, London mayor Ken Livingstone and Olympics and London Minister Tessa Jowell joined relatives at King's Cross.
Hundreds of people were injured in the attacks on three Tube trains and a bus.
Some victims claim they are struggling to deal with a complex and unwieldy compensation system.
The memorial ceremony was held at King's Cross station shortly before 0900 BST, when the first bomb exploded two years ago.
The prime minister laid a wreath bearing the handwritten message: "In remembrance and with deepest sympathy."
John Falding, who lost his partner Anat Rosenberg in the Tavistock Square bus bomb, said events like Saturday's helped him to cope.
"I certainly found that last year I gained a lot of strength from it. Otherwise I would find myself sitting at home feeling mawkish."
Mr Falding said those caught up in the 7 July attacks had been particularly affected by the recent suspected failed car bombs in London and Glasgow, but added: "The more this goes on, the more they will realise how futile their efforts are.
"The more London shows its bravery the more we show this is our victory."
Quiet tribute
Other officials at the ceremony were London transport commissioner Peter Hendy and Tim O'Toole, managing director of London Underground.
The Mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoe - in London for the Tour de France Grand Depart - also attended.
He laid a wreath on behalf of the people of Paris whom he said "stood at one with London in our fight to protect the universal values of peace and democracy".
Mr Livingstone's message read: "The bombers tried to divide us and they failed.
"It is you we remember and we will build a city worthy of your memory - a city in which it is the people who are its greatness, not its buildings or the things that pass."
The officials bowed their heads in silence for several minutes, before relatives of the bomb victims came forward to lay their own tributes.
Organisers said there would be no national silence and, in line with the wishes of families, no large public event.
The act of remembrance comes as police and security services are on heightened alert, with a number of high-profile events such as Wimbledon, the Live Earth concert and the first stage of the Tour de France taking place in London.
'Fed up'
It has emerged that 118 out of 614 compensation claims made by victims have not yet been fully resolved.
The authority denied it had been "sitting on applications" for two years and said it was always looking at how to make the system easier.
A total of £4.2m has been paid out so far.
Ms Jowell told BBC News 24 the claims had been dealt with "as swiftly as the individual circumstances of these claims allow".
However, she said the government was considering an overhaul of the compensation system.
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