UK police treating park stabbing rampage as terrorism

READING: A stabbing rampage in the southern English town of Reading, in which three people were killed and three others were seriously wounded, is being treated as terrorism, police said

A 25-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder after the stabbings on Saturday in a park in Reading, 65km west of London.

A security source said the man, who remained in police custody, is a Libyan.

“Counter Terrorism Policing can now confirm that the stabbing incident that happened in Reading last night has now been declared a terrorist incident,” Thames Valley Police said yesterday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who described the incident as appalling, held a meeting yesterday with security officials, senior ministers and police to be updated about the investigation, a spokesperson for Johnson said.

Initially, police and the government had said the incident did not appear to be terrorism and they were keeping an open mind as to the motive, adding that they were not looking for any more suspects.

The stabbings took place after a rally by anti-racism protesters in the park, Forbury Gardens, but appeared to be unrelated to that.

“The Black Lives Matter event had finished some three hours previous and was by all accounts a very well-conducted, peaceful demonstration, and this is not a connected attack whatsoever,” Jason Brock, the head of the local council authority, told the BBC.

A witness said the attack began when a man suddenly veered toward a group of about eight to 10 friends and began stabbing them.