Security lockdown as shots heard outside Parliament
House of Commons suspended in session as police handle a 'firearms incident' outside Parliament
There was a major security alert at the Palace of Westminster after a man apparently carrying a knife charged through the gates into the front yard of the parliamentary compound.
Amid shouts and screams, sounds similar to gunfire rang out.
Two people were seen to be lying within Old Palace Yard, immediately outside Westminster Hall.
The sitting in the House of Commons was suspended while police officers sealed off the area around the incident.
Immediately before the incident, at around 2.45pm, a crowd of passers-by was seen running from the direction of Westminster Bridge and around the corner into Parliament Square.
Staff inside Parliament were told to stay inside their offices.
Minutes after the incident, an emergency services helicopter landed in Parliament Square, as sirens were heard outside.
Air ambulance medics came from the helicopter to assist the casualties.
Two people lay on the ground in the yard. One of them appeared to have had clothes removed as emergency workers attempted to resuscitate the pair.
Parliament Square was closed to traffic, as an ambulance entered the gates to New Palace Yard.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews tweeted after the incident: “Our thoughts and prayers are with those caught up in the attack on Westminster this afternoon.”
The Community Security Trust tweeted their thoughts to those involved, before adding: “We are monitoring the situation and are in contact w/ Police. There is no indication that it is linked to the Jewish community at this stage”
Jewish neighbourhood watch group Shomrim tweeted that they “are liaising with @metpoliceuk counter terrorism. This is being treated as an isolated incident.”
Witness Don Brind told the Press Association he heard shots being fired and saw two people apparently injured on the ground.
Mr Brind, a researcher for MPs, said: “I heard some shouting and saw some running out of the corner of my eye and then a short time after that there was a shot. I looked and I saw a civilian on the ground, with somebody standing over him with what I assumed to be a gun.
“Then I looked and about 10 yards away, there was a yellow jacketed person on the ground, who appeared to be alive and talking.”
He said he assumed the person in the high-visibility jacket was a police officer.
Pictures emerged of a car having crashed into the railings of Parliament at the end of Westminster Bridge
Press Association reporter Laura Harding, who was in Westminster at the time of the incident, said: “Everyone has been evacuated into Central Lobby, including a group of schoolchildren and kitchen staff.
“Around 15 schoolchildren aged around 10, with armed police coming through the lobby now.
“The children are really calm, the teachers are comforting them.
“Everyone is standing around on their phones.
“There are also a bunch of young people from the Hammersmith Boxing Club in their tracksuits and the British Lionhearts boxing group.”
The Met Police has tweeted: “We were called at approx 2.40pm to reports of an incident at #Westminster Bridge. Being treated as a firearms incident – police on scene”.
Commons Leader David Lidington told MPs: “What I am able to say to the House is there has been a serious incident within the estate.
“It seems that a police officer has been stabbed, that the alleged assailant was shot by armed police.
“An air ambulance is currently attending the scene to remove the casualties.
“There are also reports of further violent incidents in the vicinity of the Palace of Westminster but I hope colleagues on all sides will appreciate that it’d be wrong of me to go into further details until we have confirmation from the police and from the House security authorities about what is going on.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
