London attacks: 12 arrested after terrorists go on deadly killing spree

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Members of the emergency services attend to victims of a terror attack on London Bridge on Saturday. (AFP / DANIEL SORABJI)
Updated 04 June 2017
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London attacks: 12 arrested after terrorists go on deadly killing spree

LONDON: Seven people died and 48 were injured in the Saturday night terrorist attacks in the center of London, police said. Armed officers shot dead three suspects. The initial figures suggested six people had been killed and 20 injured, but these figures rose through the night — a seventh person died Sunday morning.

On Sunday afternoon British police said they had arrested 12 people in east London over the attack. The arrests were made as the Metropolitan Police's head of counter-terrorism Mark Rowley said early Sunday that police were conducting further investigations to make certain all those connected with the attack were accounted for.
 
Rowley said the suspects were confronted and shot by police "within eight minutes of the first call."
 
He added the three attackers were wearing what appeared to be suicide vests but they turned out to be fake.
 
Police said they were called just after 10 p.m. (2100GMT) Saturday to reports of a vehicle hitting pedestrians on the bridge, which crosses the River Thames in central London.
 
Soon after, there were reported stabbings at nearby Borough Market.
 
The violence turned a summery Saturday night in an area packed with bars and restaurants into a scene of panic and chaos, with officers running through crowded streets screaming for people to flee and lifeboats drafted to help clear the area.
 
Prime Minister Theresa May said it was a potential act of terrorism and the Metropolitan Police force said it had declared the attacks as “terrorist incidents.”
 
The Metropolitan Police, which tweets at @metpoliceuk, said the attacks at London Bridge and Borough Market had been “declared as terrorist incidents.”

The force advised people to avoid the areas “to allow the emergency services to deal with the ongoing incidents.”

The force tweeted a warning telling people in the area to run to safety, hide and then call police if it is safe to do so.

On Sunday morning the London police chief said patrols would be increased, including those by armed officers.

 

About two hours after the first reports of an incident, television images showed people walking away from the London Bridge area with their hands on their heads. Police tweeted that Londoners should “remain calm but be alert and vigilant.”

Nick Brandon of British Transport Police said the force had received reports of “multiple” casualties in an incident possibly involving a knife and a vehicle. He said he did not know how serious the injuries were.

Multiple witnesses reported a vehicle veering off the road and hitting several pedestrians; others also said they saw a man with a knife.

British website MailOnline quoted witnesses as saying the three attackers shouted "this is for Allah" as they left the van and attacked victims.

An eyewitness at the scene told Arab News that she had seen what looked like a man with his throat cut on London Bridge.

"We saw a man coming off the bridge with blood all over him and it looked like he had his throat slashed," the eyewitness said.

"He was holding his neck. Just been told by the police all the bridges are shut, we can't get back and so are trapped in the cordon. It also smells quite strongly of burning," the eyewitness added, requesting not to be named.

Nick Archer, who was in the London Bridge area, said  he came out of a bar and looked to his left and saw a man lying on the ground. He thought the person had been drinking, but then police vans flew by. 

Several witnesses said some victims also appeared to have stab wounds.

London’s Metropolitan Police said armed officers were at two scenes — on the bridge and the nearby market, a busy area of restaurants and bars.

Witnesses reported a vehicle hitting pedestrians and seeing injured people on the ground on the bridge. One, Holly Jones, told the BBC a white van veered off the road and struck as many as six people. She said she saw at least four or five people on the ground.

Another witness, Will Heaven, said he saw people who appeared to have been hit, and one being put into an ambulance.

“We saw injured people on the road, injured people on the pavement,” he told Sky News.

A man who gave only his first name, Ben, told BBC radio that he “saw a man in red with a large blade, at a guess 10 inches long, stabbing a man, about three times” near Borough Market.
 
Other witnesses reported seeing as many as three attackers with knives.
 
Gerard Vowls, 47, told The Guardian newspaper that he saw a woman being stabbed by three men at the south end of London Bridge. He said he threw chairs, glasses and bottles at the attackers in a bid to stop them.
 
“They kept coming to try to stab me . they were stabbing everyone. Evil, evil people,” he told the newspaper. “I want to know if this girl is still alive. I’ve been walking around for an hour and a half crying my eyes out. I don’t know what to do.

Transport for London said busy London Bridge station and two others were closed at the request of police.

Prime Minister Theresa May’s office said she was “in contact with officials and is being regularly updated.” Downing St. said she would chair a meeting of the government’s COBRA emergency committee on Sunday.

Meanwhile world leaders have responded to Saturday’s attack. The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation condemned the attacks, reinforcing the UAE’s stance against extremism and terrorism.

The ministry said the latest attacks in the heart of London reaffirmed the urgent need for concerted international efforts to combat terrorism, calling for joint cooperation and addressing this serious scourge that threatens the security and stability of countries all over the world.

And in Saudi Arabia an official source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed the Kingdom's “strong condemnation and denunciation of the attacks.”

In a statement to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), the source offered the Kingdom's condolences to the families of the victims and to the UK Government and people, wishing a speedy recovery to the wounded.

The official source reiterated the “Kingdom's solidarity with the United Kingdom against terrorism and extremism which target security and stability around the world without exception.”

The Saudi embassy in the UK warned Saudis in London, especially in the south-east of the British capital, to be cautious and follow up police instructions.

And it advised Saudi nationals to call the embassy in case of an emergency on: +44 (0)20 7917 3000, +44 (0)7947 253753,
+44 (0)7946 779614.

The incident  comes less than three months after an attacker ran down people with a vehicle on Westminster Bridge, killing four, then stabbed a policeman to death outside Parliament.

On May 22, a suicide bomber killed 22 people and injured dozens at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester. After that attack, Britain’s official threat level from terrorism was raised to “critical,” meaning an attack may be imminent. Several days later it was lowered to “severe,” meaning an attack is highly likely.


(With SPA; AP & Reuters)


Trump pauses tariffs on most nations for 90 days, raises taxes on Chinese imports

Updated 22 sec ago
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Trump pauses tariffs on most nations for 90 days, raises taxes on Chinese imports

WASHINGTON: Facing a global market meltdown, President Donald Trump on Wednesday abruptly backed down on his tariffs on most nations for 90 days, but raised his tax rate on Chinese imports to 125 percent.
It was seemingly an attempt to narrow what had been an unprecedented trade war between the US and most of the world to one between the US and China.
Global markets surged on the development, but the precise details of Trump’s plans to ease tariffs on non-China trade partners were not immediately clear.

Pressure builds on Afghans fearing arrest in Pakistan

Afghan refugees sit on a loaden vehicle at a holding centre ahead of their departure for Afghanistan.
Updated 09 April 2025
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Pressure builds on Afghans fearing arrest in Pakistan

  • According to the UN refugee agency, more than 24,665 Afghans have left Pakistan since April 1, 10,741 of whom were deported

KARACHI: Convoys of Afghans pressured to leave Pakistan are driving to the border, fearing the “humiliation” of arrest, as the government’s crackdown on migrants sees widespread public support.
Islamabad wants to deport 800,000 Afghans after canceling their residence permits — the second phase of a deportation program which has already pushed out around 800,000 undocumented Afghans since 2023.
According to the UN refugee agency, more than 24,665 Afghans have left Pakistan since April 1, 10,741 of whom were deported.
“People say the police will come and carry out raids. That is the fear. Everyone is worried about that,” Rahmat Ullah, an Afghan migrant in the megacity Karachi told AFP.
“For a man with a family, nothing is worse than seeing the police take his women from his home. Can anything be more humiliating than this? It would be better if they just killed us instead,” added Nizam Gull, as he backed his belongings and prepared to return to Afghanistan.
Abdul Shah Bukhari, a community leader in one of the largest informal Afghan settlements in the coastal city, has watched multiple buses leave daily for the Afghan border, about 700 kilometers away.
The maze of makeshift homes has grown over decades with the arrival of families fleeing successive wars in Afghanistan. But now, he said “people are leaving voluntarily.”
“What is the need to cause distress or harassment?” said Bukhari.
Ghulam Hazrat, a truck driver, said he reached the Chaman border crossing with Afghanistan after days of police harassment in Karachi.
“We had to leave behind our home. We were being harassed every day.”
In Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, on the Afghan border, police climb mosque minarets to order Afghans to leave: “The stay of Afghan nationals in Pakistan has expired. They are requested to return to Afghanistan voluntarily.”
Police warnings are not only aimed at Afghans, but also at Pakistani landlords.
“Two police officers came to my house on Sunday and told me that if there are any Afghan nationals living here they should be evicted,” Farhan Ahmad told AFP.
Human Rights Watch has slammed “abusive tactics” used to pressure Afghans to return to their country, “where they risk persecution by the Taliban and face dire economic conditions.”
In September 2023, hundreds of thousands of undocumented Afghans poured across the border into Afghanistan in the days leading up to a deadline to leave, after weeks of police raids and the demolition of homes.
After decades of hosting millions of Afghan refugees, there is widespread support among the Pakistani public for the deportations.
“They eat here, live here, but are against us. Terrorism is coming from there (Afghanistan), and they should leave; that is their country. We did a lot for them,” Pervaiz Akhtar, a university teacher, told AFP at a market in the capital Islamabad.
“Come with a valid visa, and then come and do business with us,” said Muhammad Shafiq, a 55-year-old businessman.
His views echo the Pakistani government, which for months has blamed rising violence in the border regions on “Afghan-backed perpetrators” and argued that the country can no longer support such a large migrant population.
However, analysts have said the deportation drive is political.
Relations between Kabul and Islamabad have soured since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.
“The timing and manner of their deportation indicates it is part of Pakistan’s policy of mounting pressure on the Taliban,” Maleeha Lodhi, the former permanent representative of Pakistan to the UN told AFP.
“This should have been done in a humane, voluntary and gradual way.”


Beijing rejects Ukraine claim ‘many’ Chinese fighting for Russia

Updated 09 April 2025
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Beijing rejects Ukraine claim ‘many’ Chinese fighting for Russia

  • Chinese foreign ministry said it was 'absolutely groundless' to suggest many Chinese citizens were fighting in Ukraine
  • Beijing was verifying relevant information with Kyiv while Moscow declined to comment on the matter

KYIV: China on Wednesday rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s claim that many Chinese citizens were fighting for Russia, calling it “absolutely groundless.”
Zelensky said Tuesday that Kyiv had captured two Chinese citizens fighting alongside Russian forces, and that there was evidence “many more Chinese citizens” were fighting with Moscow.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a press conference it was “absolutely groundless” to suggest many Chinese citizens were fighting in Ukraine.
“The Chinese government has always asked its citizens to stay away from areas of armed conflict (and) avoid involvement in armed conflicts in any form,” he said.
He added that Beijing was verifying relevant information with Kyiv.
The Kremlin declined to comment on the matter.
China presents itself as a neutral party in the conflict and says it is not sending lethal assistance to either side, unlike the United States and other Western nations.
But it is a close political and economic partner of Russia, and NATO members have branded Beijing a “decisive enabler” of Moscow’s offensive, which it has never condemned.
“The Chinese side’s position on the issue of the Ukraine crisis is clear and unequivocal, and has won widespread approval from the international community,” Lin said.
“The Ukrainian side should correctly view China’s efforts and constructive role in pushing for a political resolution to the Ukraine crisis.”
Zelensky told reporters on Tuesday that Ukrainian troops had captured the two Chinese citizens fighting with Russian forces in the Donetsk region.
The media outlet Ukrainska Pravda, citing the Ukrainian army, reported that one of the captives had paid $3,480 to an intermediary in China to join the Russian army because he wanted to receive Russian citizenship.
The captive, who is now cooperating with the Ukrainian authorities, also said he was trained in the Russian-occupied Lugansk region as part of a group of Chinese nationals, some of whom had legal issues back home, according to Ukrainska Pravda.
Kyiv released a video of one of the alleged Chinese prisoners showing a man wearing military fatigues with his hands bound.
He mimicked sounds from combat and uttered several words in Mandarin during an apparent interview with a Ukrainian official not pictured.
A senior Ukrainian official told AFP they were captured “a few days ago,” adding that there might be more of them.
The official said the prisoners were likely Chinese citizens who were enticed into signing a contract with the Russian army, rather than being sent by Beijing.


India says PM Modi invited for Russia’s Victory Day parade

Indian PM Narendra Modi has been invited to attend Russia’s annual Victory Day parade in Moscow. (File/AFP)
Updated 09 April 2025
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India says PM Modi invited for Russia’s Victory Day parade

  • Historically close to Russia, India has resisted Western pressure to distance itself from Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine
  • Russia sells India critical military hardware, and has also increasingly emerged as a key energy supplier

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to attend Russia’s annual Victory Day parade in Moscow, India’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday, without confirming the premier’s attendance.
Russia has promised to hold its biggest World War II commemorations “in history” to mark 80 years since the Soviet Union and allied powers defeated Nazi Germany.
The annual Victory Day celebration on May 9 has emerged as Russia’s most important public holiday, one marked with a massive parade of military equipment and soldiers through the Red Square, and culminating in an address from President Vladimir Putin.
Historically close to Russia, India has resisted Western pressure to distance itself from Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine.
Russia sells India critical military hardware, and has also increasingly emerged as a key energy supplier as New Delhi seeks a pipeline of cheap imports to fuel its economic expansion.
“Our prime minister has received an invitation for participation in the Victory Day celebrations,” foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said in New Delhi.
“We will be announcing our participation in victory day celebrations at the appropriate time.”
Modi visited Russia last October for a multilateral summit and Putin is expected to arrive in India for a bilateral later this year.


Never take peace for granted, King Charles tells Italy parliament

Britain's King Charles III and Britain's Queen Camilla arrive to attend a joint session at the Italian Parliament.
Updated 09 April 2025
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Never take peace for granted, King Charles tells Italy parliament

  • “Britain and Italy stand today united in defense of the democratic values we share,” King Charles said
  • He became the first ever British monarch to address a joint session of Italy’s parliament

ROME: King Charles III warned Wednesday that peace can never be taken for granted and hailed Italy for standing by Ukraine, as he made a historic address to parliament in Rome.
“Peace is never to be taken, never to be taken for granted,” the 76-year-old monarch said during his third day of a state visit to Italy with his wife, Queen Camilla.
“Britain and Italy stand today united in defense of the democratic values we share.
“Our countries have both stood by Ukraine in her hour of need and welcomed many thousands of Ukrainians requiring shelter.”
He noted the defense ties between Italy and the UK, through NATO and a project to develop a new fighter jet with Japan.
Speaking in English with some Italian, Charles became the first ever British monarch to address a joint session of Italy’s parliament.
The king also addressed an issue close to his heart, the environment.
“Just as we stand together in defense of our values, so too we stand together in defense of our planet,” he said.
“From the droughts in Sicily to the floods in Somerset, both our countries are already seeing the ever more damaging effects of climate change.”