London attack was a terrorist attack by ISIS supporter

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People stabbed, man shot

'Terror attack' in south London: Armed police shoot 'man strapped with silver canisters' after a number of people are stabbed in machete rampage on busy high street

Armed police have shot a man after a number of people were stabbed during a knife rampage in the middle of a busy high street in broad daylight - three months after two were killed in London Bridge horror.

Officers arrived at the scene outside a supermarket on High Road in Streatham, south London, at around 2pm today.

It is thought that a number of people had been stabbed in what is currently being treated by police as a terrorist-related incident.

Witnesses claim to have seen the suspect strapped with with silver canisters

Metropolitan Police issued a statement that said: 'A man has been shot by armed officers in #Streatham.

'At this stage it is believed a number of people have been stabbed.

'The circumstances are being assessed; the incident has been declared as terrorist-related.'

Police were filmed standing behind an unmarked police car and pointing their guns towards a suspect who appeared to be lying on the pavement outside the Boots store on the high street.

It is thought that a number of people have been stabbed in what is currently being treated by police as a terrorist-related incident

Dozens of emergency vehicles are currently lining the area and a helicopter ambulance landed on Tooting Bec Common a few hundred yards from the scene of the shooting.

London Ambulance Service said: 'We have a number of resources attending an incident in Streatham High Road.'

A large section of the A23 remains sealed off to traffic and buses are being diverted.

Lambeth Borough Police have also tweeted about the incident.

Armed police shoot man dead in 'terror attack' in Streatham

Dozens of emergency vehicles are currently lining the area as well as reports of an air ambulance and police helicopter circling above

Members of the public have been commenting on social media.

Rector Anna Norman-Walker, who works at St Leonard's Church in Streatham, said: 'Situated in the #Streatham Rectory with police tape both sides of us... prayers for our wonderful police who are doing such a remarkable job in a frightening situation.'

One user wrote: 'What the hell is going on in Streatham?!? Helicopters circling above and sirens outside. Twitter saying a man has been shot dead. 'It's a Sunday afternoon and families are everywhere. Very scary.'

Armed police shoot man after 'multiple people stabbed' in Streatham

Another added: 'Be careful out today I'm London, just seen about two dozen armed police, a man shot and a two stab victims receiving urgent medical care.

'I don't know but I think like I heard 3 gun shot in Streatham.'

A third man said: 'Something major happening in Streatham High Road. Armed police and roads closed off.'

Local resident Stuart Birch, 50, a bookmaker, said: 'I was just coming back from the dentists at around 2.30pm when I saw a helicopter ambulance on the Common and a police helicopter hovering above the High Street.

'Police have cordoned off a section of the main road either side of the White Lion.

'I saw customers being evacuated by the police from a coffee shop near the pub.

'Then an ambulance turned up outside the pub with horns blaring and the blue lights flashing.'

Dozens of emergency vehicles are currently lining the area and a helicopter ambulance landed on Tooting Bec Common a few hundred yards from the scene of the shooting

Gulled Bulhan, a 19-year-old student from Streatham, claimed to have witnessed the shooting on Streatham High Road in front of a Boots store.

He said: 'I was crossing the road when I saw a man with a machete and silver canisters on his chest being chased by what I assume was an undercover police officer - as they were in civilian clothing.

'The man was then shot. I think I heard three gun shots but I can't quite remember.

'After that I ran into the library to get to safety.

'From the library I saw a load of ambulances and armed police officers arrive on the scene.'

Mr Bulhan said people began running into nearby stores after the incident.

A car believed to be an armed response car that crashed on the way to the scene as officers investigate the incident

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Police shoot ‘knifeman’ in Belgium just minutes after London terror attack

Police in Belgium have shot a man who reportedly stabbed two people. This attack happened just minutes after police in London shot a man dead after several people were stabbed in Streatham. According to Belgian newspaper HLN, the suspect was injured by officers in Ghent, a major city in northwest Belgium.

The Ghent suspect has been pictured pinned to the ground by police on the busy road as witnesses watch from behind a cordon. The Metropolitan Police said the London shooting occurred at around 2pm on Streatham High Road on Sunday. The force believes there are also ‘two injured victims’ from the incident and are awaiting updates on their condition.

https://metro.co.uk/2020/02/02/police-s ... -12169611/

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Streatham attacker Sudesh Amman



A man shot dead by police after he stabbed people in south London had been released from prison in January.

Sudesh Amman, 20, was released around a week ago after serving half of his sentence of three years and four months for terror offences.

He was under active police surveillance at the time of the attack on Streatham High Road, which police believe to be an Islamist-related terrorist incident.

Three people were injured, with one person in a life-threatening condition.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the government would announce further plans for "fundamental changes to the system for dealing with those convicted of terrorism offences" on Monday.

He said the government had moved quickly to introduce measures strengthening its response to terrorism, including longer prison sentences and more money for police, following the attack at Fishmongers Hall, near London Bridge, in December.

Gunshots were heard on Streatham High Road just after 14:00 GMT on Sunday.

Reports suggest Amman entered a shop and started stabbing people. It appears he then left the shop and stabbed a woman.

Witnesses reported hearing three gun shots and seeing a man lying on the ground outside a Boots pharmacy, as armed police approached and shouted at those nearby to move back.

He had a hoax device strapped to his body, police said.

The BBC's Daniel Sandford said the events appeared to unfold after witnesses saw an unmarked police car pull in front of another car near Streatham Common, forcing it to stop.

He said this could be linked to the subsequent stabbings and police shooting and it was possible somebody was stopped, before being followed by undercover officers.

London Ambulance Service said it treated the three people for injuries at the scene and all were taken to hospital.

Of the other two, one had minor injuries, believed to have been caused by glass following shots from the police firearm, and the third person's condition was not life-threatening.

In a statement, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D'Orsi said armed officers were in "immediate attendance" and shot a male suspect, as part of a "proactive Counter Terrorism operation".

The situation has been contained and officers from the Met's Counter Terrorism Command are now leading an investigation into the incident, she said.

Streatham High Road remains closed and a cordon is in place, with enhanced police patrols in the area.

Who was Sudesh Amman?

By BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel De Simone

Sudesh Amman pleaded guilty in November 2018 to six charges of possessing documents containing terrorist information and seven of disseminating terrorist publications.

One of the manuals Amman admitted owning was "Bloody Brazilian Knife Fightin' Techniques".

He was jailed at the Old Bailey the following month for three years and four months.

I was there and recall Amman smiling as he was sentenced.

Amman was first arrested in north London in May 2018 by armed officers on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack.

He had come to the attention of counter-terrorism police in April that year when officers were made aware of postings on the Telegram messaging app.

The posts included a photo showing an image of a knife along with two firearms on a Shahada flag along with Arabic words meaning: 'Armed and ready April 3'.

Eyewitness Gjon Kathegjolli said he was in a barber shop when he heard a woman, who was with a baby in a push chair and two young boys, scream and saw her being stabbed.

A man then walked past carrying a knife the size of his forearm, he said.

Daniel Gough said he was out for a run when he heard shots and everyone ran.

"There was panic, people were yelling," he said. "A young girl running alongside me kept asking 'Is this what I'm meant to do?' - she was very distressed.

"I saw a policeman and he yelled, telling everyone to get back. His gun was pointing in the direction of a man on the floor."

Adam Blake, who was walking along Streatham Common, described how he saw two or three cars crash into each other, including an unmarked police car, as the incident unfolded.

"Another police car carried on towards the hill pursuing someone," he told the BBC.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said the attacker had "some clear history in relation to counter-terrorism offences".

"It's right that these individuals are kept behind bars and we need to stop their early release from prison," she said.

Analysis

By BBC home affairs correspondent Tom Symonds

The swift response of officers has almost certainly saved lives but there will be inevitable questions about the operation.

It has not been confirmed they were specifically following the man but they appear to have reacted fast when he started attacking people with a knife.

Counter-terrorist police and MI5 have around 3,000 so called "subjects of interest" at any one time but a much smaller number are under round-the-clock surveillance because it takes a huge team of specialist officers to watch a suspect covertly.

This means that preventing terrorism is all about taking difficult decisions. Which suspects should be watched? What level of risk do they pose and when is the best time to make an arrest, given the need to capture real evidence?

Those decisions have become harder in recent years as would be attackers are increasingly likely to act alone and to use low-tech weapons, sometimes on a whim.

The prime minister said his thoughts were with those injured and their loved ones and he paid tribute to the "speed and bravery" of emergency services who responded.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: "Terrorists seek to divide us and to destroy our way of life - here in London we will never let them succeed."

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