Man Rams Vehicle into Pedestrians in North London, Injuring 10

 

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LONDON – One person has been arrested after a vehicle hit pedestrians in north London, injuring several people, police said Monday, as Muslim leaders said worshippers were mown down after leaving a mosque.

The London Ambulance Service said the injured were being taken to hospitals. Eyewitnesses reported seeing police give emergency medical treatment to at least one of the injured.

The Muslim Council tweeted that worshippers were struck by a van as they were leaving prayers at the Finsbury Park mosque. It said its prayers were with the victims.

The neighbourhood has two mosques, and several hundred worshippers would have been in the area after attending prayers as part of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

The Finsbury Park mosque was associated with extremist ideology for several years after the Sept 11 attacks in the United States, but was shut down and reorganized. It has not been associated with radical views for more than a decade.

London police declared the crash a major incident and closed the area to normal traffic.

Metropolitan Police said officers were called to the scene on Seven Sisters Road at 12.20am local time. Many police cars and ambulances responded. No other details were immediately available.

Britain’s terrorist alert has been set at “severe” meaning an attack is highly likely.

Earlier this month, a van veered into pedestrians on London Bridge, setting off vehicle and knife attacks that killed eight people and wounded many others on the bridge and in the nearby Borough Market area. Three Muslim extremists who carried out the attack were killed by police.

Manchester was also hit by a severe attack when a bomber killed more than 20 people at an Ariana Grande concert.

 

By DANICA KIRKA and PAISLEY DODDS
Associated Press