A vehicle mowed down several pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, killing two.
• An assailant then ran inside Parliament Square, fatally attacking a police officer with a knife.
• The attacker was shot by policeAn armed assailant mowed down pedestrians on London’s crowded Westminster Bridge before trying to storm the city’s Parliament building Wednesday, leaving at least three people dead and several others injured.
Police said they are investigating the situation as a terrorist incident. The assailant was shot and killed by police.
“Although we remain open to the motive, a full counter terrorism investigation is already under way,” the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
Shortly
before 3 p.m. local time on Wednesday, a vehicle plowed into
pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, in the heart of London, before
driving onto the busy sidewalk in front of the gates of Parliament.
Witnesses said the assailant then ran out of the car and rushed through
the gates wielding a knife. The assailant fatally stabbed one of the
armed police officers protecting Parliament, before being taken down.
Mark
Rowley, Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner, said that in
addition to the police officer and the assailant, two people were killed
on Westminster Bridge. At least 20 others were injured in the attack.
The
injured include three police officers who were hit by a car while on
their way back from a commendation ceremony. French authorities
confirmed three French students also suffered injuries.
Footage
from the scene on Westminster Bridge showed pedestrians rushing to help
those injured in the chaos, including some victims who appeared to have
severe wounds.
“I
was just outside Westminster tube station when I heard an almighty
crash and a vehicle that looked like a 4x4 had crashed into railings.
There was smoke coming from underneath the bonnet. I saw a pedestrian or
a cyclist who had clearly been hit,” Alan Parry from Sky Sports News said. “The
driver sprinted away from the scene. That was followed by four what
sounded very much like gunshots. Then all of a sudden all hell was let
loose and police descended everywhere. The whole area was locked down.
The Port of London Authority said paramedics
treated a woman who was pulled from the River Thames after the attack
on Westminster Bridge. She was alive but undergoing very urgent medical
treatment. 
As Parliament went on lockdown, hundreds of politicians and reporters huddled inside the building.
“I
head what sounded like an explosion and raised voices outside
Parliament and so I rushed to the window,” HuffPost UK reporter Owen Bennett recounted.
“I saw people running past the entrance to the New Palace Yard entrance
to Parliament, and then at least one person try to turn into the Yard
itself. A police officer chased this person and wrestled them to the
ground. Shots were then fired, I can’t remember how many and I didn’t
see who fired them.”
Jonathan
Reynolds, a Labour Party member of Parliament, hurried through the
chaos to find his 2-year-old son, Seth, in Westminster Palace’s nursery.
“It was clear people were badly shaken,” he recalled in a post on Facebook.
“I
think everyone who works in Westminster has prepared themselves for a
day like this, hoping it would never come ... It is clear this was a
very serious incident and that swift action from the security services
saved many lives,” he added. “We are a little shaken, but secure and
defiant.”
Prime
Minister Theresa May was safe after the incident. “The thoughts of the
PM and the government are with those killed and injured in this
appalling incident, and with their families,” her office said in a
statement.
Following
the incident, leaders around the world expressed their condolences for
the victims and their support for British leaders.
The White House said U.S. President Donald Trump was briefed on the situation and spoke with the British prime minister.
“The city of London and Her Majesty’s government have the full support
of the U.S. government in responding to the attack and bringing those to
justice who are responsible,” White House press secretary Sean Spicer
said.
“We
condemn these horrific acts of violence, and whether they were carried
out by troubled individuals or by terrorists, the victims know no
difference,” U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson added.
Canadian
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Twitter that Canada and the U.K.
stand together. “Our thoughts are with the victims of today’s attack in
London & their families. Canadians remain united with the people of
the UK,” Trudeau tweeted.
The
attack also resonated in Belgium, which on Wednesday marked the first
anniversary of a terror attack in Brussels. On March 22, 2016, suicide
bombers killed 32 people at
the national airport and a Brussels subway station. Belgium Prime
Minister Charles Michel expressed his condolences on Twitter. 
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