UK PARLIAMENT ATTACK FOILED
4 killed in bid to storm House of Commons; UAE slams terror act
london — A vehicle mowed down pedestrians on London’s Westminster Bridge, killing at least three people and leaving others with injuries described as catastrophic. Around the same time on Wednesday, a knife-wielding attacker stabbed a police officer and was shot dead on the grounds outside Britain’s parliament, sending the compound into lockdown.
Police are still searching for one of the two people believed to have launched the attack outside the parliament building, assistant editor of the Daily Telegraph newspaper Christopher Hope tweeted, citing senior government sources.
A BBC journalist said two assailants were believed to have been in a vehicle involved in the attack. “BBC understands from multiple sources two assailants in vehicle on Westminster Bridge,” BBC correspondent Dominic Casciani said on Twitter.
The UAE Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the terror attack. “The UAE calls on all countries to intensify efforts to eliminate the menace of terror, which targets stability and security of the entire world,” a ministry statement said.
Authorities in London said they were treating the attacks as a terrorist incident. Some of those injured were French high school students, France’s prime minister said.
The threat level for international terrorism in the UK was already listed at severe. Wednesday was the anniversary of suicide bombings in the Brussels airport and subway that killed 32 people, and the latest events echoed recent vehicle attacks in Berlin and Nice, France. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Prime Minister Theresa May, who was rushed from the building within minutes, will chair a meeting of the government emergency committee. London Police Commander B.J. Harrington said a full counterterrorism investigation was underway.
The incident in London unfolded within sight of some of the city’s most famous tourist sites, including the London Eye, a large Ferris wheel with pods that overlook the capital. It stopped rotating and footage showed the pods full as viewers watched police and medical crews on the bridge, which has at its north end Big Ben and parliament, two iconic symbols.
“The whole length of the bridge there were people on the ground,” Richard Tice, a witness, told Sky News. The London Ambulance Service said it had treated at least 10 people on the bridge, and British port officials said a woman was pulled from the River Thames, injured but alive.
Colleen Anderson of St Thomas Hospital said a female pedestrian died and around a dozen people were hurt.
“There were some with minor injuries, some catastrophic. Some had injuries they could walk away from or who have life-changing injuries,” she said.
French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve offered support to the British and to “the French students wounded, their families and their schoolmates”. London is a common destination for French school trips.
The French foreign ministry said three students on a school trip from Saint-Joseph in the Brittany town of Concarneau were among the injured. The ministry said it was in contact with British authorities.
Witness Rick Longley told the Press Association he heard a bang and saw a car plow into pedestrians and come to a crashing stop. Images from the scene showed pedestrians sprawled on the ground, with blood streaming from a woman surrounded by a scattering of postcards. “They were just laying there and then the whole crowd just surged around the corner by the gates just opposite Big Ben,” he said. — AP, Reuters
As we were going across the bridge, we saw people lying on the floor, they were obviously injured. I saw about 10 people maybe. And then the emergency services started to arrive. Everyone was just running everywhere Bernadette , an eyewitness
Although the background to these acts are not yet clear, I reaffirm that Germany stands alongside Britons in the struggle against terrorism
Angela Merkel, German Chancellor
We are all concerned with terrorism. France, which has been struck so hard lately, knows what the British people are suffering today
Francois Hollande, French President
We stand ready to assist in any way the British authorities would find helpful. Our hearts go out to those affected
Mark Toner, US State Dept. spokesman
We don’t split terrorism into categories; we consider it as absolute evil. At this moment our hearts are with the British people
Maria Zakharova, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman