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A man pictured dressed up as what appeared to be a suicide bomber on a busy Tube train has hit back saying he was only wearing a soldier outfit.

Pedro Fonseca says commuters were mistaken that his controversial outfit - head to toe camouflage with a rucksack and a 'package' on his chest - was a 'terrorist' costume.

Mr Fonseca was reportedly on his way to Covent Garden for a fancy dress party when he was snapped on the underground.

One scared commuter even considered taking Mr Fonseca down when he mistook his bag for a bomb on the London Underground's District Line.

Alec Wilson, snapped the group when he saw them at Fulham Broadway and posted the picture on Twitter and Instagram.

Mr Fonseca, who is from Portugal, told the Mail Online: "We were on the train having fun and I was dressed as a soldier and my mates were dressed as policemen.

"It wasn't a fake bomb I was wearing around my chest, it was a small bag I was using to keep my wallet and phone in so I had easy access to them.

"I didn't want to put them in the backpack, where I wouldn't be able to see them or get to them easily."

He said other commuters were having fun with him and his friends, who were dressed a cops and were carrying fake guns.

"Some were even asking my friends who were dressed as police to handcuff them to the the hand rails for a joke. Honestly, we didn't have any problems at all," Mr Fonseca said.

The so-called 'detonation wire' was actually a keyring, he added.

Mr Fonseca said others in the group were dressed as soldiers and in camouflage but didn't have any issues.

But at least one fellow passenger was unimpressed by the costume, which saw some Londoners saying "It's a dumb way to get yourself killed".

A user on the London Reddit page called the called the group of lads "c*ckwombles".

A British Transport Police spokesman said: “While this incident was not reported to us by anyone on the train, it is insensitive and crass behaviour in the light of recent terrorist attacks across the world and the threat to the UK currently at severe.

“It is important for everyone to remember the need to be responsible and considerate to fellow passengers while making your journey."