London police treat stabbing as terrorism as several hurt
British police said they were treating a stabbing on London Bridge as terrorism, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson -- in the middle of an election campaign -- returned to his office to monitor events.
London Bridge was locked down and armed police evacuated the area. Several people were injured, and police said they shot one man. Officials are treating it as terror-related, "as a precaution."
The U.K. is set to hold a general election on Dec. 12 and the last election campaign in 2017 was interrupted by attacks.
Armed police burst into restaurants in the Borough Market area at London Bridge and urged diners to leave as fast as possible. They shouted "Out, out, out," to diners at the Black and Blue bar. Diners walked out of the bar with their hands on their heads. Nearby, police shouted to pedestrians to "run."
Metropolitan Police said they'd been called to a stabbing and had detained a man at a premises near London Bridge. Armed officers closed off the famous landmark and evacuated passers-by from the surrounding area.
The Met said they'd detained a man at a premises near to London Bridge. Armed officers closed off the famous landmark and evacuated passers-by from the surrounding area.
"We believe a number of people have been injured. Further info to follow," according to a statement posted on the Met's Twitter feed. Sky reported five casualties in the incident, citing police sources.
On the north bank of the River Thames, police officers shouted to pedestrians to move back from the bridge 100 meters, and then urged them to take shelter in any nearby building, shouting: "Move inside for your own safety."
The same area of London was the scene of a terrorist attack just a few days before the general election in June 2017 in which eight people were killed and 48 injured. Three Islamist terrorists drove a van at pedestrians on the bridge before arming themselves with knives and running into Borough Market, where they stabbed people in restaurants and pubs. Armed police responded and killed the attackers.
Johnson said he was being kept updated on the incident, in a post on the the Twitter feed of his office. "I'm being kept updated on the incident at London Bridge and want to thank the police and all emergency services for their immediate response," the post said.