COP DIES IN KNIFE HORROR
Police stop terror nut on rampage of death
A KNIFE-wielding terrorist killed a policeman and caused carnage in a devastating attack at the heart of the British government yesterday.
He mowed down tourists and pedestrians in a hired car on London’s Westminster Bridge.
Then he tried to storm Parliament on foot, stabbing a hero policeman to death.
Last night police were investigating whether the attack was inspired by the Islamic State terror group.
The House of Commons went into immediate lockdown amid a full-scale terror alert.
Four people died – including the bearded terrorist – and at least 20 more were hurt, several suffering “catastrophic injuries” in the bloodbath. Witnesses told how the attacker in a dark grey Hyundai i40 4x4 mounted the pavement on the bridge and ploughed into people, knocking them over “like skittles”.
He then smashed the car into railings in the shadow of Big Ben before sprinting through open gates into Parliament’s grounds.
Hacked
Brandishing an eight-inch knife, as well as a second knife, he hacked an unarmed cop to death before being gunned down by one of the officer’s colleagues.
The unnamed attacker, described as dark-skinned and in his 40s, was given CPR by medics and taken to hospital but died later.
At least two others – one a woman crushed under the wheels of a bus – died on the bridge.
Police declared it was likely to be a lone wolf attack but were checking reports of a possible second man.
The crumpled bodies of pedestrians littered the bridge.
Among those injured were three police officers walking home from a commendation ceremony.
Three teenage French language students were also hurt, and a cyclist was pinned to Parliament’s railings by the car. One woman even jumped over the edge of the bridge into the River Thames. She survived but was seriously hurt.
The attack was compared to similar atrocities in Nice and Berlin in 2016 when lorries deliberately ploughed into crowds of people in busy tourist areas.
The deadly attack began yesterday at around 2.40pm.
PM Theresa May was evacuated from Westminster just minutes later in a silver Jaguar after police gunshots rang out outside parliament.
Other politicians described how they fled down Westminster corridors as they heard the gunshots. Buckingham Palace was also put on lockdown.
Armed officers and bomb disposal experts reportedly searched every room in parliament for suspicious packages and terror threats.
A cordon was put in place around Westminster Bridge as central London ground to a halt. It was the city’s most shocking terror incident since Lee Rigby’s brutal killing and the 7/7 bombings.
Police have appealed for any witnesses to send them videos or pictures they have of the incident. The attack was visible to many, including Westminster workers and visitors to the London Eye.
Many tourists were left stranded in mid-air as police ordered the attraction to stop.
But officers hoped to quiz them as their view overlooks where the attack took place. Scotland Yard’s top
anti-terror officer Mark Rowley did not rule out calling in the military if further attacks were to take place in coming days.
He said: “This was a day we’ve planned for but hoped would never happen. Sadly it is now a reality.”
Hundreds of visitors and tourists in Westminster were last night being kept on lockdown by police, who consider them potential witnesses.
Within hours of the news breaking Twitter users launched hashtags including #WeAreNotAfraid to show defiance at the attack.
Politicians reacted with horror to the incident, which brought back memories of MP Jo Cox’s brutal murder last year.
Jo’s husband Brendan Cox tweeted: “Whoever has attacked our parliament for whatever motive will not succeed in dividing us.”
And Labour MP Mary Creagh even suggested terrorists got “lucky” as the gates were open at the time of the attack because MPs were voting.
Last night Mrs May was chairing a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee.
Later she described the attack as “sick and depraved” and vowed: “We will all move forward together, never giving in to terror and never allowing the voices of hate and evil to drive us apart.”
President Trump last night offered the “full co-operation and support” of the United States