London terror attack condemned by Theresa May as British-born terrorist kills three in Westminster rampage
A ‘SICK and depraved’ terrorist killed three people and injured 29 in a rampage on Parliament that knifed Britain in the heart.
Theresa May condemned the maniac who mowed down pedestrians in London “at 70 mph” on Westminster Bridge before storming Parliament and stabbing a police officer to death.
The heroic cop who tried to stop the attacker was named as married father PC Keith Palmer.
Also among the victims was Aysha Frade, 43, who is believed to have been killed as she travelled to pick her children up from school.
Speaking the morning after the devastation, the PM admitted the British-born lone-wolf attacker had previously been investigated by MI5– but had been dismissed as a “peripheral figure”.
The large-scale terror attack has exposed critical flaws in the security of Westminster, as MPs said the killer ran through a “weak spot” and got 25 yards inside the gates.
Shocking footage emerged of the attacker’s car, a year-old Hyundai Tucson registered in Chelmsford, Essex, ploughing into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, forcing one woman to jump into the Thames to escape.
Witness James Sheriff told the Times “he must have been going at 70mph”.
The car used to carry out the slaughter – on the anniversary of the Brussels airport attack – was hired last Thursday in Birmingham, according to Newsnight.
Terror cops arrested eight people in raids on six different addresses across London and Birmingham in connection with the atrocity.
The Prime Minister, who was bundled into a silver Jaguar and rushed from the scene, said it was “no accident” the terrorist struck “in the heart of our capital”.
Speaking after a Cobra meeting, she said: “The terrorist chose to strike at the heart of our capital city.
“The values our parliament represents – democracy, freedom, human rights, the rule of law – command the admiration and respect of free people everywhere. Any attempt to defeat those values through violence and terror is doomed to failure.”
Mark Rowley, national lead for Counter Terrorism Policing and Met Acting Deputy Commissioner, said the attacker was “inspired by Islamic terrorism”.
He added that hundreds of police officers were involved in the investigation to check his background and trace his known associates.
Dramatic pictures show the bloodied bodies of victims littering Westminster bridge as heroic bystanders desperately try to save the lives of those “catastrophically” injured.
Among them were MP Tobias Ellwood who gave PC Palmer mouth-to-mouth. Ellwood’s brother was killed in the Bali bombings in 2002.
The 50-year-old Foreign Office Minister and Conservative MP said: “It is a huge tragedy, it really is.
“I tried to stem the flow of blood and give mouth-to-mouth while waiting for the medics to arrive but I think he had lost too much blood.
“He had multiple wounds, under the arm and in the back.”
MP James Cleverley tweeted: “I’ve known Keith for 25 years. We served together in the Royal Artillery before he became a copper. A lovely man, a friend. I’m heartbroken.”
Others were tossed into the path of oncoming traffic, including one woman who was seen lying under a bus.
She said: “I confirmed one fatality. A woman. She was under the wheel of a bus. She died, confirmed her death at the scene.”
The Metropolitan Police opened a Casualty Bureau for those worried about friends and family.
London mayor Sadiq Khan said: “London is the greatest city in the world and we stand together in the face of those who seek to harm us and destroy our way of life.
“Londoners will never be cowed by terrorism.”
The motivation for the attack is not yet known but ISIS supporters celebrated the horror on social media, dubbing it “revenge” for UK strikes in Mosul.
Those celebrating the attack, which had similarities with atrocities in Nice and Berlin, called it “blood for blood”.
The attack came on the first anniversary of the Brussels airport bombings.
The Muslim Council of Britain said: “We are shocked and saddened by the incident at Westminster. We condemn this attack and while it is still too early to speculate on the motives, our thoughts and prayers are for the victims and those affected.
“We pay tribute too to the police and emergency services who handled this with bravery.”
Rob Smith, who was running past Westminster when he said he saw the drama unfolded, told Sun Online: “The grey Hyundai car came across the bridge then across the cycle lane, hit a man on a bike and drive into the wall gates. Police ran straight out and shot him.”
He said officers had been drawing their guns as they ran out. Cops had held a practice terror drill on Sunday and were at the scene within six minutes of the attack.
Staff inside Parliament were told to stay in their offices and away from windows as a sitting in the House of Commons was suspended this afternoon. Hundreds of MPs were trapped in the House of Commons for five hours.
Twitter users paid tribute to those killed in yesterday’s attack under the hashtag ‘IamLondon’.
People were trapped on the London Eye for more than four hours as cops placed the area on lockdown.
Parliament Square, Whitehall, Westminster Bridge, Lambeth Bridge, Victoria Street up to the junction with Broadway and the Victoria Embankment up to Embankment tube were all closed after the attack.
London Ambulance Service Deputy Director of Operations Pauline Cranmer said: “Our thoughts are with the friends and families of those affected by today’s incident.
“We treated 12 patients for serious injuries, who were all taken to hospital. Eight further patients were treated for less serious injuries at the scene. Sadly, three people also died at the scene.
“We were called to the incident at 2.40pm today, with the first ambulance crew arriving within six minutes.”
They added: “We declared a major incident and our priority was to assess patients and ensure that they were treated and taken to hospital as soon as possible.
“I would like to thank our staff and the other emergency services who responded today.”
His press secretary, Sean Spicer, confirmed the pair had spoken.
Spicer said: “The President has been briefed on the situation in London. He just spoke to Prime Minister May and we will have a readout on that call soon.
“We obviously condemn today’s attack in Westminster which the United Kingdom is treating as an act of terrorism we applaud the quick response that the British police and their first responders made to the situation.
“The victims are in our thoughts and our prayers. The city of London and Her Majesty’s government have the full support of the US government in responding to the attack and bringing those to justice who are responsible.”
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