London parliament car smash treated as ‘terrorism’

LONDON: A car ploughed into pedestrians and cyclists near the Houses of Parliament in London during the morning rush hour yesterday, injuring three people in what police suspect is the latest in a string of vehicle-based attacks in the British capital.

Armed police flooded the area after the incident was reported at 7.37am local time, hauling the driver from the vehicle, arresting him and cordoning off streets surrounding the heart of Britain’s government. The nearby Westminster subway station was closed, and police asked people to stay away from the area.

“Given that this appears to be a deliberate act, the method and this being an iconic site, we are treating it as a terrorist incident,” Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu of the Metropolitan Police Service told reporters outside Scotland Yard.

A man in his late 20s was arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences. The suspect was not cooperating with police, and officers were trying to confirm his identity, said Mr Basu. No other suspects have been identified and police believe there is no further threat to Londoners, he said.

Eyewitnesses said the silver car was traveling at high speed when it hit pedestrians and cyclists, then crashed into a barrier designed to protect parliament from vehicle attack. Two people were taken to local hospitals and another was treated at the scene. One woman remained hospitalised yesterday afternoon, but her injuries aren’t believed to be life threatening, authorities said.

“The car drove at speed into the barriers outside the House of Lords. There was a loud bang from the collision and a bit of smoke,’’ Ewelina Ochab told The Associated Press. “The driver did not get out. The guards started screaming to people to move away.’’

“It didn’t look like an accident,’’ said another witness, Jason Williams. “How do you do that by accident?’’

The same area was the site of an attack in March 2017, when Khalid Masood ploughed a car into crowds on Westminster Bridge, killing four people. Masood abandoned his car and then stabbed and killed a police officer before being shot dead in a courtyard outside Parliament.

A few months later, a van rammed into pedestrians on London Bridge before three men abandoned the vehicle and attacked revellers in the nearby Borough Market. Eight people were killed and 48 injured in the attack.