Seven people were confirmed dead in attacks that took place in London on Saturday night, The Guardian reported. The incident came just a few days before the country’s general election, which was scheduled to be held on Thursday, June 8. However, Prime Minister Theresa May said that the election will not be postponed.
No terror group has taken responsibility for the attack, as of Sunday evening.
Here is what happened through the day:
8.45 pm: Canada “strongly condemns” the attack in which a citizen of theirs also died.
Canada strongly condemns the senseless attack that took place last night in London, United Kingdom, which killed and injured many innocent people. I am heartbroken that a Canadian is among those killed.
We grieve with the families and friends of those who have lost loved ones, and wish all those injured a speedy and full recovery.
Londoners and people across the United Kingdom have always displayed strength and resilience in the face of adversity. We recently witnessed this after the attacks in Manchester and in the Westminster area of London. This time will be no different.
These hateful acts do not deter us; they only strengthen our resolve. Canadians stand united with the British people. We will continue to work together with the United Kingdom and all our allies to fight terrorism and bring perpetrators to justice.
The Government of Canada will not comment further at this time out of respect for the family.
8:15 pm: The National Health Service of England said that 21 of those injured in the attack are in critical condition.
6 pm: Here is Theresa May’s response to the attack.
5.45 pm: Twelve people have been arrested in Barking, east London in connection with the attack, BBC said quoting Scotland Yard.
4 pm: Donald Trump is tweeting about the London attacks again. “We must stop being politically correct and get down to the business of security for our people. If we don’t get smart it will only get worse”, he says. The US president also seems to think the attack speaks against gun control. “Do you notice we are not having a gun debate right now? That’s because they used knives and a truck!” He goes on to criticise the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.
4 pm: German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemns the attack.
3.15 pm: Home Secretary Amber Rudd says the terror threat level in the country has not been raised from severe to critical.
3.10 pm: May says the election will be held on June 8 as planned, and that campaigning will resume on Monday. “We will come together and, united, we will take on our enemies.”
3.07 pm: May says there is “far too much tolerance of extremism in our country” and that Britain wants to double its efforts against fighting terrorism. She also says that the country’s police has foiled five “credible attacks since the Westminster attack”.
3.05 pm: Prime Minister Theresa May is making a statement after chairing an emergency cabinet meeting on Sunday morning. She says, “Just before 10.10 pm last night the police received reports a van had hit pedestrians on London Bridge. It then went to Borough Market, where three men got out and attacked people with knives. They all appeared to be wearing explosive vests.” She adds that seven people have died and 48 injured in the attack.
2.15 pm: Russian President Vladimir Putin condemns the incident.
1.30 pm: France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian says there were four French people injured in the attack, one of them seriously.
What happened earlier
On Saturday night, a van drove into people near the London Bridge on Saturday, days before the country’s general election. Incidents of stabbing were also reported at nearby Borough Market. The police said that all the attackers involved in the incident had been killed.
Seven people were killed and at least 48 people have been injured in the incident, reported The Guardian. They are being treated at six hospitals across London. The investigation into the attacks were being led by Counter Terrorism Command, Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley said in a statement. The Birmingham hotel where the Indian cricket team is staying is also believed to be under lockdown after the attacks.
A van driven by a man travelling at about “50 miles an hour” rammed into people, said BBC reporter Holly Jones, who was present there at the time of the incident. “He swerved right round me and then hit about five or six people,” she said. “He hit about two people in front of me and then three behind.”
Witnesses said that soon after the van incident on the London Bridge, a knife-wielding man started charging towards a bar packed with people, reported AFP. The police asked people to run to a place of safety and hide as the attackers may still be armed and in the area. The local administration is working with the rescue services to find people who may have fallen into the River Thames, reported Reuters.
United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May condemned the attack and said the incident is being treated as a “potential act of terrorism”. “Our thoughts are with those who are caught up in these dreadful events,” she said in statement.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan described the incident as a “horrific terrorist attack”. “We don’t yet know the full details, but this was deliberate and cowardly attack on innocent Londoners and visitors to our city enjoying their Saturday night,” he said according to BBC.
United States President Donald Trump has also offered help to the UK. “We are with you. God bless!” he tweeted.
The incident came two weeks after 22 people died in a suicide bombing at a concert in Manchester. In a similar incident in March 2017, a man had mowed people down with his vehicle on the Westminster bridge while heading to the Parliament building. At least 40 others were injured in the incident.
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