The Islamic State group on
Thursday claimed the deadly assault at the British parliament, as Prime
Minister Theresa May identified the attacker as a British-born man known to
intelligence services.
"An act of terrorism tried
to silence our democracy," May told a packed House of Commons, which stood
for a minute's silence in remembrance of the victims of Wednesday's strike on
the symbol of Britain's democracy.
"We are not afraid and our
resolve will never waver in the face of terrorism," May said.
Armed police have arrested
eight people in raids linked to the rampage that left three people dead and
sowed panic in the heart of London.
The IS group said it was responsible, according to the Amaq
propaganda agency linked to the jihadist organisation.
"The perpetrator of yesterday's attack in front of the
British parliament was a soldier of the Islamic State and the operation was
carried out in response to calls to target coalition countries," Amaq said
citing a "security source."
Defiant British lawmakers returned to "business as
usual" in the surreal silence of an area of central London normally
thronged with tourists.
Twenty-nine people were treated in hospital, including seven in
critical condition, some with "catastrophic" injuries. Among them
were French school children and foreign tourists.
The attacker mowed down pedestrians with a car on Westminster
bridge, killing two, and then jumped out and stabbed to death a police officer
guarding parliament before being shot dead.
The carnage was unleashed on the same day Brussels was marking the
anniversary of Islamic State group bombings that killed 32 people.
Hundreds of extra police were on patrol in London as officers
worked around the clock to piece together what happened in the deadliest attack
in Britain since four suicide bombers killed 52 people on the capital's
transport system in July 2005.
Europe has been on high alert after a wave of deadly jihadist
assaults over the past two years.
May said the attacker's identity was known to the police and the MI5
domestic intelligence service.
He was British-born and some years ago had been a "peripheral
figure" investigated over concerns about violent extremism.
"There was no prior intelligence of his intent -- or of the
plot," May said.
Britain's top anti-terror officer Mark Rowley said that police had
arrested eight people in raids on six houses in London, the central city of
Birmingham and elsewhere.
"It is still our belief... that this attacker acted alone
yesterday and was inspired by international terrorism," he said.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon told BBC radio the working
assumption was that the attack was linked to "Islamic terrorism in some
form".
The British flag over parliament flew at half-mast in a sign of
mourning while forensic officers in white suits carried out a fingertip search
of the courtyard outside where 48-year-old policeman Keith Palmer was stabbed
to death.
Police officers lined up outside their new headquarters nearby for
a minute's silence in front of the eternal flame to officers who have given
their lives in service.
Queen Elizabeth II was due to open the building formally on
Thursday but postponed the visit.
"My thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathy are with all
those who have been affected by yesterday's awful violence," she said, in
a statement expressing her "enduring admiration" for the police.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan called a candlelit vigil on Trafalgar
Square later Thursday.
Among those in parliament was Foreign Office minister Tobias
Ellwood, whose face was left smeared with blood after giving first aid to the
fatally wounded police officer.
US President Donald Trump and French President Francois Hollande
both spoke to May and Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany stood with Britons
"against all forms of terrorism".
Britain's last terror attack was the 2016 assassination of MP Jo
Cox by a pro-Nazi sympathiser in her constituency in northern England shortly
before the vote to leave the European Union.
That vote triggered a push in Scotland for a second referendum on
seceding from the United Kingdom.
The Scottish Parliament has postponed a debate and vote on the
referendum following the London attack.
The debate is now due to resume on Tuesday, the day before Britain
is set to trigger the Article 50 two-year departure process for leaving the EU.
May's spokesman said there was no intention to delay Article 50
because of Wednesday's attack.
- International victims -
A Spanish diplomatic source confirmed that one of the dead was 43-year-old British citizen Aysha Frade, whose mother was Spanish.
A Spanish diplomatic source confirmed that one of the dead was 43-year-old British citizen Aysha Frade, whose mother was Spanish.
Media reports said she was on her way to pick up her two
daughters, aged seven and nine, from school.
A man in his 50s was also killed.
Several international tourists visiting one of London's most
iconic sights were also caught up in the violence.
Those wounded included 12
Britons, four South Koreans, three French children, two Romanians, two Greeks
and one each from China, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland and the United States,
May said.
Three police officers were among those hurt, two of them
seriously, and a seriously injured woman was rescued from the River Thames
after coming off the bridge.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault travelled to London to
visit three French pupils on a school trip who were among those hurt.
Hi. I’m Sana ur Rehman Designer of This Blog. I’m CEO/Founder of Pak Zest. I’m Creative Art Director, Web Designer, UI/UX Designer, Interaction Designer, Industrial Designer, Web Developer, Business Enthusiast, StartUp Enthusiast, Speaker, Writer and Photographer. Inspired to make things looks better.
0 comments:
Post a Comment