Knifeman arrested at palace

British counter-terror police are investigating after two police officers were injured while arresting a man with a knife outside Buckingham Palace.

The incident occurred after the man stopped his car at traffic lights next to a police van. Officers inside the vehicle spotted a large knife in the suspect’s car.

As the officers moved to detain and question the man, a struggle ensued and both officers sustained “minor injuries” to their arms, police said.

Witness Kiana Williamson told the Press Association: “The police were trying to get the man out of the car, shouting. More police were arriving on the scene and the man was fighting back.”

A 26-year-old man, who was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and assault on police, was taken to a London hospital for treatment for minor injuries. There he was arrested under the Terrorism Act.

No members of the royal family were in the palace at the time.

Detective Superintendent Guy Collings said the “quick and brave” actions of the officers meant the man was detained very quickly, and no members of the public had any contact with him.

The two officers and the suspect have been discharged from hospital and the suspect was yesterday being questioned, police said.

Two hours earlier, a 30-year-old man was shot dead after attacking two soldiers with a machete in the centre of Brussels.

One soldier suffered a wound to the face, the other has a hand injury.

Soldiers have become a familiar sight in the Belgian capital since terrorist attacks killed more than 30 people last year. The latest attack is being treated as a terrorist incident, the prosecutor’s office said.