Terrorist attack in London

Westminster attack: police hunt for clues after five dead in 'sick and depraved' incident 

 Police and security services are investigating the background of the man who killed four people and injured dozens in a terrorist rampage at Westminster as security was visibly stepped up in the capital on Thursday.

While the Houses of Parliament prepared to sit as normal, officers were attempting to establish the motivation and any terrorist links of the attacker – who was known to counter-terrorism officials – and look into his connections and associates.

A raid was carried out by armed police overnight at a flat above a shop in Birmingham just west of the city centre, with surrounding roads closed for several hours. BBC Newsnight reported late on Wednesday that the vehicle used in the attack – a Hyundai i40 – could have been rented in Birmingham.
A direct link between the two events is yet to be established, however, West Midlands police referred enquiries to the Metropolitan police in London, which said it would not be commenting for “operational reasons”.
In London, extra officers – armed and unarmed – have been ordered onto the streets and Parliament Square remains closed as the capital wakes up. Westminster Bridge remains closed and the tube station is open but for interchange only.
Up to 40 people were injured when a lone terrorist attacked Westminster, stabbing a police officer to death as he tried to storm parliament, and killing three members of the public as he careered through the heart of the capital in a 4x4 vehicle.
The attacker was among those killed in the first mass-casualty terrorist attack on Britain in over a decade. The Commons and Lords were locked down for several hours because of fears of further attacks.
The policeman who died was named as Keith Palmer, 48, a member of the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Service. He was married with children and had been a police officer for 15 years.
The Met’s head of counter-terrorism, Mark Rowley, said the motivation of the attacker was assumed to be “Islamist related” and he had tried to enter parliament but had been stopped. Rowley said Palmer “was someone who left for work today expecting to return home at the end of his shift, and he had every right to expect that would happen”.
People fled for their lives as a Hyundai 4x4 driven by the terrorist at about 2.40pm indiscriminately ran into people on Westminster Bridge. The use of the vehicle to attack civilians was a direct copy of an Islamic State tactic used previously with murderous effect in Nice and Berlin. The vehicle then careered off the road on to pavement a few metres away from Big Ben and the attacker tried to storm parliament armed with a knife.
Moments later, a police officer who was guarding parliament was fatally stabbed. The attacker, dressed in black, was shot by another armed officer and died of his injuries.
The Guardian understands the initial working theories of the police investigation are the attacker was inspired by Isis and was most likely a “lone actor”. The attacker was already known to counter-terrorism officials. Rowley said investigators were trying to establish the attacker’s associates and his preparations for the attack.
Theresa May was rushed out of parliament as the attack unfolded and later chaired an emergency meeting of the government’s crisis committee, Cobra.
Shortly before 9pm on Wednesday, her voice cracking with emotion, the prime minister confirmed that what she called the “sick and depraved” attack had been carried out by a single assailant. She also praised the bravery of the police and other emergency services, who “ran towards the danger, even as they encouraged others to move the other way”.
The prime minister added that Britain’s threat level would remain at severe, where it has been for some time; but she struck a defiant tone, insisting it would be business as usual for MPs and Londoners on Thursday.
“The location of this attack was no accident. The terrorists chose to strike at the heart of our capital city where all nationalities, religions and cultures come together to celebrate the values of liberty, democracy and freedom of speech,” she said.
The Guardian

Read the whole article and watch the Prime Minister's statements on the attack here:
London's terrorit attack