U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

N&P: Discuss governments, nations, politics and recent related news here.

Moderators: Alyrium Denryle, Edi, K. A. Pital

Post Reply
User avatar
Tribble
Sith Devotee
Posts: 3082
Joined: 2008-11-18 11:28am
Location: stardestroyer.net

U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Tribble »

U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament
House of Commons suspended and locked down, least 4 people lying on ground, some bleeding heavily

The leader of Britain's House of Commons says a man attacked a police officer at Parliament and has been shot by police.
David Lidington, a member of the Conservative government, said the Parliament complex was in lockdown.
He said there were reports of further violent incidents nearby, and police said they have been called to a firearms incident on nearby Westminster Bridge.

Witnesses said a vehicle struck several people on the bridge, and photos showed a car plowed into railings.
At least four people were lying on the ground on Westminster Bridge near Parliament, some bleeding heavily and apparently unconscious.

Two people were being treated inside the gates by medical staff, a Reuters witness said.

A parliamentary clerk told Reuters two people had been shot, but there was no official confirmation from the police. 

The Speaker of the House of Commons suspended the session as police responded to the incident. Armed police were seen entering Parliament.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/london-shooting-1.4035964

Note that this is just the initial media report and no doubt we'll find out more later on.
"I reject your reality and substitute my own!" - The official Troll motto, as stated by Adam Savage
streetad
Padawan Learner
Posts: 240
Joined: 2011-06-12 01:02pm
Location: Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by streetad »

The BBC are reporting one dead and several hurt. A car ran down several people on Westminster bridge, the driver then attempted to enter the Houses of Parliament, leading to a police officer being stabbed and the assailant being shot dead.

Scotland Yard are treating it as a terrorist incident 'until they know otherwise'.
Kinyo
Youngling
Posts: 79
Joined: 2011-10-19 04:48am

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Kinyo »

Parliament shooting: Woman dies in Westminster attack
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39355940

Link to one BBC article. Can't quote as on my mobile.
User avatar
Juubi Karakuchi
Jedi Knight
Posts: 619
Joined: 2007-08-17 02:54pm

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Juubi Karakuchi »

BBC website includes a comment from Lord Paddick.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-39355505

Apparently there's a suspect package attached to a vehicle outside Parliament, hence Parliament not being evacuated. If this is true (and it might not be), we're potentially looking at more than a lone wolf.
User avatar
Hillary
Jedi Master
Posts: 1261
Joined: 2005-06-29 11:31am
Location: Londinium

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Hillary »

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-39355505

Latest news in the link - it's all beginning to firm up a bit now.

There was only 1 attacker involved and he is dead.

3 others, including 1 police officer, are also dead.

At least 20 injured.

Still no confirmation as to the identity or motive of the attacker.
What is WRONG with you people
User avatar
wautd
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 7574
Joined: 2004-02-11 10:11am
Location: Intensive care

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by wautd »

Hillary wrote: Still no confirmation as to the identity or motive of the attacker.
I can make an educated guess...
Kinyo
Youngling
Posts: 79
Joined: 2011-10-19 04:48am

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Kinyo »

edit Hillary said everything I did so no point repeating.
User avatar
The Romulan Republic
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 21559
Joined: 2008-10-15 01:37am

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by The Romulan Republic »

wautd wrote:
Hillary wrote: Still no confirmation as to the identity or motive of the attacker.
I can make an educated guess...
Yeah, but speculating and jumping to conclusions doesn't do any good.
"I know its easy to be defeatist here because nothing has seemingly reigned Trump in so far. But I will say this: every asshole succeeds until finally, they don't. Again, 18 months before he resigned, Nixon had a sky-high approval rating of 67%. Harvey Weinstein was winning Oscars until one day, he definitely wasn't."-John Oliver

"The greatest enemy of a good plan is the dream of a perfect plan."-General Von Clauswitz, describing my opinion of Bernie or Busters and third partiers in a nutshell.

I SUPPORT A NATIONAL GENERAL STRIKE TO REMOVE TRUMP FROM OFFICE.
streetad
Padawan Learner
Posts: 240
Joined: 2011-06-12 01:02pm
Location: Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by streetad »

Channel 4 news, a generally well-respected broadcaster in the UK, already named the perpetrator as Abu Izzadeen, a hate preacher known to the police, before embarrassingly having to retract when it turned out that he is in fact currently in jail.

So yeah, it's probably best to wait.
User avatar
The Romulan Republic
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 21559
Joined: 2008-10-15 01:37am

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by The Romulan Republic »

Yeah.

And even if it turns out to be an Islamic terrorist, their's still a world of difference between "lone nut job" and "organized terrorist cell", for example.
"I know its easy to be defeatist here because nothing has seemingly reigned Trump in so far. But I will say this: every asshole succeeds until finally, they don't. Again, 18 months before he resigned, Nixon had a sky-high approval rating of 67%. Harvey Weinstein was winning Oscars until one day, he definitely wasn't."-John Oliver

"The greatest enemy of a good plan is the dream of a perfect plan."-General Von Clauswitz, describing my opinion of Bernie or Busters and third partiers in a nutshell.

I SUPPORT A NATIONAL GENERAL STRIKE TO REMOVE TRUMP FROM OFFICE.
User avatar
Joun_Lord
Jedi Master
Posts: 1211
Joined: 2014-09-27 01:40am
Location: West by Golly Virginia

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Joun_Lord »

Why I think its always good to wait for facts rather then broadcast speculation. Causes entirely too much confusion with inaccurate or outright false information that rarely gets retracted except as some little blurb nobody ever sees. I know its not entirely unavoidable but some restraint in reporting might help keep people from thinking there is multiple attackers when its one person being reported multiple times and getting an innocent (or relatively innocent in the case of the accused in this) person labeled a terrorist.

More on topic if this is islamic terrorism I fear it probably will make the UK even less welcoming to immigrants. A high profile attack on their center of government, going to give xenophobes and racists plenty of ammunition to label all immigrants as bad people.

From what I know, and those more in the know can correct me if I'm wrong, the environment in the UK is already getting pretty hostile to immigrants with immigrants being blamed for joblessness, immigrant communities getting a bad rap for "rape gangs", fears of extremists, and good old plain racism. I've read some have blamed brexit passing on fears and racism towards immigrants. This surely is not going to help immigrant's public perception.
streetad
Padawan Learner
Posts: 240
Joined: 2011-06-12 01:02pm
Location: Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by streetad »

In my own experience I haven't noticed any significant increase in anti-immigrant sentiment or racism. There have always been those elements just like any society, but I wouldn't say it's getting worse.

It seems to suit certain politicians to talk this stuff up for their own ends - the far right have certainly sometimes been able to exploit local issues such as the prostitution ring in Rotherham, for example, and if you listen to Donald Trump you would conclude that there is outright race war on the streets.

There is certainly a more general backlash against globalisation, but I think that is the case across the whole western world.

Then again, I'm not an immigrant so perhaps i'm wrong.
EnterpriseSovereign
Sith Marauder
Posts: 4041
Joined: 2006-05-12 12:19pm

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by EnterpriseSovereign »

Apparently there are four dead, including the attacker who was shot- he ran over a bunch of pedestrians (killing two) on the bridge before crashing into the Parliament grounds and stabbing a cop. So far it appears it was one guy acting alone.
EnterpriseSovereign
Sith Marauder
Posts: 4041
Joined: 2006-05-12 12:19pm

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by EnterpriseSovereign »

Update is that 5 dead and 40 wounded- Asst. Commissioner Mark Rowley just gave a detailed statement saying that while they believe they know the identity of the perpetrator they're not saying just yet, however the leading theory is that it was Islamic Terrorism.
User avatar
wautd
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 7574
Joined: 2004-02-11 10:11am
Location: Intensive care

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by wautd »

wautd wrote: No that wasn't directed at you. Just a peculiar thing I noticed since the attacks in Paris when lurking the comment sections from news articles.
ghetto edit: come to think of it, the first time I heared about the "evil zionists wanting to make Islam look bad" was from a friend after the Charlie Hebdo attack. He's a certified conspirancy nut so I assume it's a pretty popular meme in those mids.

Anyway, we'll see when they know more about the attacker, but looking at the modus operandi I think you're being naïeve not to assume it's an islamist.
User avatar
LadyTevar
White Mage
White Mage
Posts: 23179
Joined: 2003-02-12 10:59pm

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by LadyTevar »

BBC News is currently having trouble loading, but here is the most recent update:

British Born Attacker 'Known to M15'
  • Four Dead -- PC Keith Palmer, Aysha Frade, Kurt Cochran and the attacker.
    12 Britons in the hospital, 3 French schoolchildren, and 9 other nationalities injured.
    Islamic State has claimed the attacker as one of theirs
    PM Theresa May has stated the attacker was part of an earlier investigation, but 'not part of the current intelligence picture'
    Six addresses in London and Birmingham were raided by police, with a total of eight (8) arrests made
PC Keith Palmer was stabbed by the attacker. Aysha Frade worked at a nearby sixth-form college a few blocks from Westminister. Kurt Cochran was an American from Utah, on holiday with his wife who is in critical care. The attacker is yet to be named.
Image
Nitram, slightly high on cough syrup: Do you know you're beautiful?
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.

"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
User avatar
wautd
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 7574
Joined: 2004-02-11 10:11am
Location: Intensive care

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by wautd »

Another similar attempt may have happened in Antwerp today. Thankfully it failed

[Quote]A man has been arrested after trying to drive into a crowd in Antwerp, Belgium.
Belgian police have confirmed a suspect has been detained.
Prosecutors have confirmed the suspect arrested is a French national and said they found knives, a shotgun and a gas can with an unknown liquid.

Read more
User avatar
Tribble
Sith Devotee
Posts: 3082
Joined: 2008-11-18 11:28am
Location: stardestroyer.net

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Tribble »

Update: Attacker now named, police raid 6 addresses and make 8 arrests:
U.K. attacker ID'd as Khalid Masood, British-born man once investigated for 'violent extremism'
Attacker had not been convicted of terrorism-related offences

Khalid Masood, 52, has been identified as the man behind the attacks Wednesday in London that left three people dead and many others injured outside Britain's Parliament.
Masood was born in Kent to the southeast of London and had been most recently living in central England, London police said.
"Masood was not the subject of any current investigations and there was no prior intelligence about his intent to mount a terrorist attack," police said in a statement. "However, he was known to police and has a range of previous convictions for assaults, including GBH [grievous bodily harm], possession of offensive weapons and public order offences."
Earlier, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May said the attacker had been investigated by British intelligence "some years ago."

May said he had been investigated by MI-5, the U.K.'s intelligence service, "in relation to concerns of violent extremism," but that he was not part of what she called the current intelligence picture, saying he was a "peripheral figure."
Masood sped across Westminster Bridge in a car, ploughing into pedestrians along the way, then ran through the gates of the nearby Parliament building and fatally stabbed an unarmed policeman before being shot dead.

May and British police say they believe he acted alone and was "inspired by international terrorism." She said there is no reason to believe that "imminent further attacks" are planned.
She called Wednesday's events "an attack on free people everywhere."

ISIS, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, claimed responsibility for the attack, the group's Amaq news agency said on Thursday. The group has been responsible for numerous bloody attacks around the globe, but also has claimed certain attacks in a show of opportunism.

Forty people were injured and 29 remain in hospital, seven of whom are in critical condition. 


Those still in hospital include:
12 Britons
3 French children
2 Romanians
4 South Koreans
1 German
1 Pole
1 Irish
1 Chinese
1 Italian
1 American
2 Greeks

Victims killed and injured
A Mormon church official says a Utah man was one of the people killed and his wife was seriously wounded and remains in hospital.
Kurt W. Cochran and his wife, Melissa, were on the last day of a trip celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary on Wednesday when the attacker struck.
The church said Thursday the Utah couple was also visiting the woman's parents who are Mormon missionaries in London.
And earlier, the Spanish Foreign Ministry said a British national whose mother is Spanish has been identified as one of the people killed.

A spokesman said that Spanish consular officials made contact with Aysha Frade's relatives in Spain's northwestern region of Galicia after her identity was confirmed. He was unable to give any further details.
The regional Voz de Galicia newspaper said that Frade was 43 years old and was teaching Spanish in London.
Queen sends condolences
Westminster Bridge has reopened, nearly 24 hours after the attack. 
Some areas around Parliament were still cordoned off on Thursday morning and a line of forensic investigators in light blue coveralls were on their hands and knees, examining the scene where the attacker was shot.
Queen Elizabeth sent her condolences on Thursday to those affected by the attack.
"My thoughts, prayers, and deepest sympathy are with all those who have been affected by yesterday's awful violence," she said in a statement. The Queen was due to officially open the new headquarters of London's police force on Thursday but will now do so at a later date.
Britain's Parliament this morning observed a minute of silence to mourn the victims.  
Flags at Parliament have been lowered to half-mast.

Since the attack, police have raided six addresses, including in London and Birmingham, which have resulted in eight arrests in total.
Mark Rowley, assistant commissioner with the Metropolitan Police, said they are continuing to investigate the attacker's "motivation, his preparation and his associates."
May and Rowley said there will be an increased police presence in the city, including armed and unarmed officers, as well as more patrols.

MP tried to save officer's life
The policeman has been identified as Keith Palmer, 48.
Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, whose brother was killed in the Bali terror attack in 2002, performed first aid on the wounded police officer, who later died. About 10 yards away lay the assailant.
"I tried to stem the flow of blood and give mouth to mouth while waiting for the medics to arrive but I think he had lost too much blood," Ellwood said. "He had multiple wounds, under the arm and in the back."

May praised Palmer, calling him a hero who "devoted his life to the service of his country." She said the husband and father had been a member of the parliamentary and diplomatic protection command for 15 years. He had also been a soldier in the Royal Artillery. 
In Parliament Thursday, Conservative MP James Cleverly called for Palmer to receive posthumous recognition for his "gallantry and sacrifice."

Choking back tears, Cleverly said he first met Palmer 25 years ago as "Gunner Keith Palmer" when both men served in the Royal Artillery.
Cleverly said Palmer was "a strong, professional public servant and it was a delight to meet him again only a few months after being elected."
'I was lucky,' says injured man
Romanian officials say the woman who plunged into the River Thames was a Romanian tourist in London to celebrate her boyfriend's birthday.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Ionut Valcu said Thursday that the woman fell into the Thames. It wasn't clear if she jumped or was thrown into the water by the SUV.
Romanian Ambassador Dan Mihalache told Realitatea TV late Wednesday that the woman sustained serious head injuries and has badly damaged lungs. Her boyfriend suffered a foot fracture. The pair haven't been named.
Mihalache said: "They were tourists, unfortunately they were unlucky. They had come to celebrate his birthday." He said the pair planned to wed.

A 26-year-old Portuguese man was among the injured.
Francisco Lopes told Portuguese channel TVI that he heard shouts behind him as he walked across Westminster Bridge and, when he turned around, he was struck by the vehicle which had mounted the sidewalk.
He said he lost consciousness and woke up racked with pain. He sustained cuts on a knee and a hand but was released from Chelsea-Westminster hospital after treatment.
"I was lucky," said Lopes, who lives in London with his mother.
Portuguese authorities confirmed that consular officials provided assistance to Lopes.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/britain-we ... -1.4037373
"I reject your reality and substitute my own!" - The official Troll motto, as stated by Adam Savage
User avatar
LadyTevar
White Mage
White Mage
Posts: 23179
Joined: 2003-02-12 10:59pm

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by LadyTevar »

Gentlemen, the Muslim =/= Terrorist discussion really should be moved to its own thread.

Also, any more accusations of "Anti-Semitic" or "Anti-(Religion)" will be HOSed
Image
Nitram, slightly high on cough syrup: Do you know you're beautiful?
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.

"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
User avatar
Dragon Angel
Jedi Knight
Posts: 753
Joined: 2010-02-08 09:20am
Location: A Place Called...

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by Dragon Angel »

"I could while away the hours, conferrin' with the flowers, consultin' with the rain.
And my head I'd be scratchin', while my thoughts were busy hatchin', if I only had a brain!
I would not be just a nothin', my head all full of stuffin', my heart all full of pain.
I would dance and be merry, life would be would be a ding-a-derry, if I only had a brain!"
User avatar
The Romulan Republic
Emperor's Hand
Posts: 21559
Joined: 2008-10-15 01:37am

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by The Romulan Republic »

A link to the source would be useful.

Interesting points their regarding Masood though:

He was born in Britain. Not a refugee or other immigrant.

Not a young man, which is the usual "profile" for the suspects in terror attacks.

He had a long history of prior criminal offences. This seems to often be the case, that those who turn to terrorism were people who had a prior criminal record, rather than previously law-abiding people just up and deciding "Okay, I'm going to go be a terrorist now."

Edit: I'd also like to know, since its not mentioned, weather they have confirmed his motive (besides Daesh claiming responsibility for it). Certainly, its very likely ideological, but people do commit mass murder for non-ideological reasons, and the presence of an ideological motive is key to distinguishing terrorism from non-terrorism.

For example, take mass shootings in the US: your typical nut job school shooter would not necessarily be a terrorist, but Dylan Roof, who committed a massacre in a black church in the name of white supremacy, would be.
"I know its easy to be defeatist here because nothing has seemingly reigned Trump in so far. But I will say this: every asshole succeeds until finally, they don't. Again, 18 months before he resigned, Nixon had a sky-high approval rating of 67%. Harvey Weinstein was winning Oscars until one day, he definitely wasn't."-John Oliver

"The greatest enemy of a good plan is the dream of a perfect plan."-General Von Clauswitz, describing my opinion of Bernie or Busters and third partiers in a nutshell.

I SUPPORT A NATIONAL GENERAL STRIKE TO REMOVE TRUMP FROM OFFICE.
User avatar
LadyTevar
White Mage
White Mage
Posts: 23179
Joined: 2003-02-12 10:59pm

Re: U.K. police shoot assailant after gunfire heard near Parliament

Post by LadyTevar »

Ok, you were warned. DragonAngel even was nice enough to make a thread for it. You ignored it. HOSed
Image
Nitram, slightly high on cough syrup: Do you know you're beautiful?
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.

"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
Post Reply