London, Aug 12 (PTI) A man was arrested at the scene after an 11-year-old girl and a 34-year-old woman were stabbed in a knife attack at the busy Leicester Square in central London on Monday.
The Metropolitan Police said the incident is not being treated as terror-related at this stage.
A security guard at a shop in one of the UK capital’s busiest tourist hubs told reporters that he had disarmed the attacker after hearing screams.
The victims were treated at the scene and then rushed to hospital, where their injuries are said not to be life-threatening.
“Officers are at the scene of a stabbing in Leicester Square. A man has been arrested and is in custody. We don’t believe there are any outstanding suspects,” the Met Police said in a statement on social media.
“Two victims, an 11-yr-old girl and a 34-yr-old woman, have been taken to hospital… The 11-year-old girl will require hospital treatment but her injuries are not life-threatening. The second victim suffered more minor injuries. At this stage, there is no suggestion that the incident is terror-related,” the police said.
Abdullah, who works at the TWG Tea shop at Leicester Square, said he “heard a scream” and saw there was a person in his early to mid-30s “stabbing a kid”.
“I jumped on him, held the hand in which he was (carrying) a knife, and just put him down on the floor and just held him and took the knife away from him,” he told ‘Sky News’.
“Then a couple of more people joined as well, and we just held him until the police came, it took maybe three to four minutes for the police to arrive and then they just took him into custody,” he said.
A napkin covered in blood could be seen on the pavement along with other strewn objects. Leicester Square and the surrounding area, home to shops, theatres, cinemas and restaurants, attracts millions of visitors weekly. A police cordon was put up near the popular LEGO and M&M stores in the square following the incident.
“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an advanced paramedic and an incident response officer. We also dispatched members of our tactical response unit,” said a London Ambulance Service spokesperson.
“We treated a child and an adult at the scene and took them to a major trauma centre,” the spokesperson said.
The incident comes two weeks after the fatal stabbing of three young girls in Southport, north-west England, at a children’s holiday dance workshop. The 17-year-old male suspect in the case remains in custody until his next court appearance at the end of October. PTI AK PY AKJ PY PY
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