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29 March 2024

British police make second arrest over London train attack

Published
By AFP

British police said Sunday they had made a second arrest in connection with the bombing of a London Underground train, as their probe into the terror attack widened.

The 21-year-old man, who has not been named, was arrested late Saturday in Hounslow, on the western rim of the capital, a statement said.

Officers had earlier arrested an 18-year-old man over Friday's attack at Parsons Green station, which injured 30 people, and said they were hunting for more suspects.

The bomb detonated in a packed train carriage Friday morning with a large explosion followed by what an eyewitness described as a "fireball".

It was Britain's fifth terror attack in six months -- a series that has claimed 35 lives.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility.

The first arrest on Saturday took place at the Dover ferry terminal -- a main link to Europe. A "number of items" were recovered during the operation and the teenager is now in custody in London, officers said.

Police had earlier raided a home in Sunbury, a town west of London. Local residents quoted in British media said the owners of the house were elderly foster parents.

Terror threat 'critical'

Britain's terror threat was raised on Friday to "critical", indicating that another attack is feared, and soldiers have been deployed to guard key points to free up police for the investigation.

The critical warning was last used after a deadly suicide attack at Manchester Arena, also claimed by IS, in May.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said Saturday that police had made "very good progress" in their enquiries, while appearing to dispute claims by US President Donald Trump that a "loser terrorist" behind the attack was known to Scotland Yard.

"It's much too early to say that," Rudd said in a televised interview.

Trump's claims, made Friday on Twitter, had already garnered a terse rebuke from Prime Minister Theresa May, who said: "I never think it's helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation."

May also announced on Friday that a thousand troops would be deployed to take on the responsibility for guarding key sites, including nuclear facilities.

he improvised device at Parsons Green, a quiet and well-off residential district, failed to detonate fully.

But the blast inflicted flash burns on passengers, and prompted dozens of others to flee in panic.

Fireball

Twitter user @Rrigs posted pictures of a white bucket smouldering on the train and described how a "fireball flew down carriage and we just jumped out open door".

The bucket, which was inside a frozen food bag, looked like the type used by builders and there appeared to be cables coming from it.

Louis Hather, 21, had been travelling to work and was three carriages down from where the explosion took place.

"I could smell the burning. Like when you burn plastic," he told AFP.

He was trampled on as panicking passengers stampeded out of the station and his leg was badly cut and bruised.

The bomb's remnants were examined by forensic scientists but no further details were released.

Several victims were taken to hospital, though health authorities said none were in a serious life-threatening condition.

Police arrest teenager over London train attack, hunt for other potential suspects

(Reuters)

British police arrested an 18-year-old man in the ferry departure area of the port of Dover on Saturday on suspicion of being involved in the bombing of a London Underground train and were looking for more potential suspects on the loose.

The man, who has not been named, was arrested on suspicion of committing, preparing or instigating an act of terrorism after Friday's attack in which 30 people were injured at Parsons Green station.

"We're keeping an open mind around whether more than one person is responsible for the attack," Neil Basu of London's Metropolitan Police told reporters.

Dover's ferry terminal was evacuated during the arrest and "a number of items" were recovered, while the teenager is now in custody in London.

The bomb detonated in a packed train carriage on Friday morning with a large explosion followed by what eyewitnesses described as a "fireball". It was Britain's fifth terror attack in six months.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility.

No safety risk

Residents of an evacuated street in Sunbury near London, where a police search in a house is ongoing, were allowed to go back home late on Saturday evening.

"Good news - all residents can now return," Surrey police said on Twitter.

"Policing activity will continue in the area -- however there is no safety risk associated with this," it added.

Local residents quoted in British media said the owners of the house were elderly foster parents.

"I was in my house with my children and there was a knock at the door from the police," local resident Mojgan Jamali told the Press Association.

"They told me to leave. They said: 'You have one minute to get out of the house and get away'."

Britain's threat level has been raised to "critical", indicating that another attack is feared, and soldiers have been deployed to guard key points to free up police for the investigation.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said Saturday that police had made "very good progress" in their enquiries, while appearing to dispute claims by US President Donald Trump that a "loser terrorist" behind the attack was known to Scotland Yard.

"It's much too early to say that," Rudd said in a televised interview. "At the moment we have one arrest and we have an ongoing operation."

Trump's claims, made Friday on Twitter, had already garnered a terse rebuke from Prime Minister Theresa May, who said: "I never think it's helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation."

The improvised explosive device in a train at Parsons Green station, a quiet and well-off residential district, failed to detonate fully, according to media reports.

But the blast inflicted flash burns on passengers, and prompted dozens of others to flee in panic.

Wall of fire

May announced on Friday that 1,000 troops would be deployed to take on the responsibility for guarding key sites, including nuclear facilities.

The critical alert terror warning was last used after the deadly suicide attack at Manchester Arena, also claimed by IS, in May.

Witnesses described chaos after Friday's explosion.

Charlie Craven told AFP he heard a "massive bang" and "an orange sort of fireball encompassing the whole Tube coming towards you."

Another, Lauren Hubbard, described it as "a wall of fire".

Twitter user @Rrigs posted pictures of a white bucket smouldering on the train and described how a "fireball flew down carriage and we just jumped out open door".

The bucket, which was inside a frozen food bag, looked like the type used by builders and there appeared to be cables coming from it.

I could smell the burning

The remnants of the bomb were examined by forensic scientists but no further details were released. British media reported that it had a timer which had failed to properly detonate.

Several victims were taken to hospital, though health authorities said none were in a serious life-threatening condition.

Only three remained in care on Saturday morning.

Louis Hather, 21, had been travelling to work and was three carriages down from where the explosion took place.

"I could smell the burning. Like when you burn plastic," he told AFP.

He was trampled on as panicking passengers stampeded out of the station and his leg was badly cut and bruised.

Four previous attacks in London and Manchester this year claimed the lives of 35 people.

Three of those attacks involved a vehicle ploughing into pedestrians.