7/7 survivor begins 200-mile trek

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A woman who lost her legs in the 7 July bombings has started a 200-mile (321km) walk from Leeds to London as part of a campaign to unite communities.

Gill Hicks, co-founder of the Walk Talk event, said inspiration for the challenge came from the way people helped her when she was injured.

She left Millennium Square on Saturday and is due in London on 17 August.

Ms Hicks said: "This is all borne out of the idea of having faith and belief in humanity."

Ms Hicks will be walking up to 10 miles a day on prosthetic legs. She will be joined by a group of people including her husband Joe Kerr.

Volunteers from the London Ambulance Service, who played a key role in her survival, will accompany her on the route.

I have had to trust my body to get me through so much and this is just another extension of that trust Gill Hicks, WalkTalk organiser

She added: "That morning on 7 July, I was saved by many people.

"It didn't matter about my faith, how much money I had or whether I was male or female, I was simply a human being and I think that will always live with me as a great example of having faith in each other."

Three of the four suicide bombers, who killed 52 people and injured nearly 800 in London in 2005, had links with Leeds.

The walk first headed to the Beeston area, where bombers Shehzad Tanweer and Hasib Hussain lived and where their leader, Mohammed Sidique Khan, had many connections.

It will then pass through 22 cities before reaching London on 17 August.

Asked how she would cope physically with the journey, Ms Hicks said: "I'm as nervous as hell.

"I have had to trust my body to get me through so much and this is just another extension of that trust."