A man wearing a hoax explosive device went on a stabbing spree near London Bridge on Friday. Two people were killed and three wounded by the attacker before he was shot dead by the police. The Telegraph has reported that the London Police have identified the attacker as a 28-year-old Muslim named Usman Khan. He was residing in the Staffordshire area, located about 150 miles northwest of London.
The British police are calling the attack a "terrorist incident." It is learned that the assailant has a history of crime and was arrested in 2012 for terrorist offenses and released in December 2018.
The attack
The attack commenced at 1:58 PM, and the attacker was confronted within five minutes. He was tackled physically as the police in London, unlike their counterparts in the United States, do not carry guns. The mayor of London Sadiq Khan is a Muslim, and he has condemned the attack as well as lauded the public for showing great courage in tackling the assailant.
Our Chief Operating Officer Khadir Meer on this afternoon's incident on #LondonBridge- on our response, thanking our emergency services colleagues and how our thoughts are with all affected by what happened today. pic.twitter.com/RrMJGsthua
— London Ambulance Service (@Ldn_Ambulance) November 29, 2019London Bridge
London Bridge is becoming a favorite for terror groups and individuals who carry out killings with impunity here.
In 2017, eight people were killed when three men in a white van ran over pedestrians on the bridge. They followed up by exiting the van and began a stabbing spree in the nearby Borough Market. The attack has brought home to the people of London that the danger from Islamic inspired terrorism is not yet over.
The video of the attack was filmed by security cameras and is available all over the world.
CNN has reported that the attacker had attended an event earlier on Friday afternoon at Fishmonger’s Hall called ‘Learning Together.' This has been confirmed by Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu.
It appears the attack commenced inside the building before the suspect ran out to the London Bridge, where he was shot dead by the police.
A man and a woman were killed in the attack and three others - a man and two women were injured and have been admitted to hospital. They have not been named. One of the victims is in a critical but stable condition while another was stable, and the third had less severe injuries.
Usman Khan
The assailant Usman Khan is 28 years old, and as yet, the London Police do not know if he had any other accomplice or was operating alone. The fact that he was arrested for a terrorist-related offense in 2012 and then released in 2018 does not speak very highly of the police. The past of the attacker does raise questions whether enough was done by the police in keeping tabs on this man.
Downgrading
The assailant appeared to be wearing a suicide vest, but later, it turned out to be a hoax.
The prime minister Boris Johnson has convened a meeting of the government's Cobra Committee. The latest attack came when the terror threat level was downgraded from "severe" to"substantial." This means the attacks were thought to be "likely" than "highly likely."
