Four people have died and at least 20 are injured after an attack in Westminster which is being treated as an act of terrorism.
A woman was killed after being hit by a car on Westminster Bridge and a policeman died after being stabbed in the grounds of parliament.
The assailant, who was also killed, is believed to have targeted pedestrians on the bridge using the car, later crashing it in to railings outside parliament and attacking the police officer.
“This is a day that we had planned for – that we all hoped would never happen – but sadly it is now a reality,” said Mark Rowley, the national lead for Counter Terrorism Policing and acting deputy commissioner.
Our strength as a city is our ability to stand together at such terrible times.”
The Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command have now begun a full scale investigation.
Westminster tube station and roads leading in to the area are closed, with police advising the public to avoid the area.
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “I would like to express my thanks to the police and emergency services who work so hard to keep us safe and show tremendous bravery in exceptionally difficult circumstances.”
London Ambulance Service were called to the scene at 2.40pm, with London Fire Brigade also in attendance.
LAS Deputy Director of Operations Pauline Cranmer said: “We have sent a number of resources to the scene including ambulance crews, London’s Air Ambulance and our Hazardous Area Response Team.”
Westminster tube station is closed, with police asking people to avoid Parliament Square, Whitehall and both Westminster and Lambeth Bridges.
St Thomas’ and Evelina London Hospitals were also earlier on lockdown.
Call police on 0800 789 123.
