London attacks: terrorism suspected

LONDON: Four people were killed and several injured in the British capital’s Westminster district yesterday in what appear to be at least two linked events in which an attacker stabbed a police officer, and another person ploughed a car into nearby pedestrians.

The person who attacked the officer was shot and killed outside Parliament.

“We are aware of reports of an incident at Westminster,” the Metropolitan Police said. “Officers – including firearms officers – are on scene and dealing with the incident.

“We are treating this as a terrorist incident until we know otherwise,” the force said.

The leader of the Commons, the lower house of Parliament, said he was suspending business after a “serious incident” in which a police officer was stabbed, and reports of other violent incidents.

In an apparent indication that the two incidents could be linked, Sky News sports reporter Alan Parry said he saw the driver run away after the car collision, followed by the sound of gunfire.

Up to a dozen people were injured after the car veered into pedestrians on Westminister Bridge, reports said.

“I was just outside Westminster tube station when I heard an almighty crash and a vehicle that looked like a 4x4 had crashed into the railings,” Parry said.

“There was smoke coming from underneath the bonnet. I saw a pedestrian or a cyclist who had clearly been hit.

“The driver sprinted away from the scene. That was followed by four what sounded very much like gunshots,” Parry said.

“Then all of a sudden all hell was let loose and police descended everywhere. The whole area was locked down.”

London Ambulance Service deputy director of operations Pauline Cranmer said her service had sent “a number of resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, London’s air ambulance and our hazardous area response team”.

Sky News reported that the attacker at Parliament, apparently armed with a knife, forced his way through security gates and assaulted a police officer.

The BBC and other media said police shot the attacker. – dpa