Terrorist event at Whitehall in London
There has been an incident involving Armed Police in London at Whitehall. The suspect was tackled by several police officers and immediately handcuffed. Armed response units have taken the man into custody. There are reports of no one being injured.
#whitehall - police questioning man pic.twitter.com/WHb5Vt6bV9
— Angus Walker (@anguswalkertalk) 27 April 2017
Armed police have blocked off the area and traffic is at a standstill. Forensic officers have confirmed a bag in which appears to be a knife was found at the scene.
A man has been arrested on possession of weapons.
Latest pictures from Whitehall, near UK parliament, where a man was arrested following an incident; no-one injuredhttps://t.co/jtIBkcXoz8 pic.twitter.com/lDOrLs5LZt
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) 27 April 2017
Sky News has reported that this incident is terrorist related.
Confirmed terrorist event
A statement by the Metropolitan Police has been made.
''A man has been arrested in Whitehall this afternoon, at approximately 14:22, following a stop and search as part of an ongoing operation. The man was arrested in Parliament Street, junction with Parliament Square, by armed officers from the Met’s Specialist Firearms Command. The man, aged in his late twenties, was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism.
Knives have been recovered from him. He is being detained under the Terrorism Act and is in custody in a south London police station. Detectives from the Counter Terrorism Command are continuing their investigation, and as a result of this arrest there is no immediate known threat.''
Londoners have been told by the police to stay vigilant ever since the previous terrorist attack on Westminster Bridge.
The British government has kept the terrorism threat level at 'Severe' and haven't made any statements whether this will change in the near future. Great Britain stood strong and valiantly against the terrorist attack in March when an Islamic radical plowed into people walking on the bridge outside Westminster before rushing into the ground and killing Pc Keith Palmer.
On that day of 22nd March, 4 innocent people lost their lives. But this incident seems to have been resolved quickly and no loss of life has occurred.
Counter-terrorism is a serious issue that many European governments are combating. Many in politics have suggested the EU's Schengen zone is outdated and poses threats to the safety of the populace. Others have said that increased border checks would resolve the issue. A combination of cooperation and strong will in Europe is something that may prevent such attacks from happening in the future.