Police have searched three addresses in central England after a suspected terror attack outside the Houses of Parliament in London.
Forensic officers work on the vehicle that crashed into security barriers outside the Houses of Parliament. Photo: AFP / Alberto Pezzali / NurPhoto
A 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of preparing an act of terror after the silver Ford Fiesta he was driving collided with cyclists and pedestrians before crashing into a security barrier just before 7.40am local time on Tuesday.
A man and a woman were taken to hospital and later discharged, while a third person with minor injuries was assessed at the scene.
The suspect is not believed to be known to MI5 or counter-terrorism police, and is not co-operating with officers.
Counter-terrorism officers are carrying out searches at two addresses in Birmingham and a residential property in Nottingham as part of the probe.
Scotland Yard's head of counter terrorism Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu said: "Given that this appears to be a deliberate act, the method and this being an iconic site, we are treating it as a terrorist incident".
He added there was "no intelligence at this time of further danger" to London or the UK as a whole.
The car crossed over a traffic island in the middle of the road before crashing into security barriers. A police officer can be seen jumping over another barrier to get out of the way.
No-one else was in the car and no weapons have been found.
The scene outside the Houses of Parliament after the car crashed into barriers. Photo: AFP or licensors
The government held a meeting of its Cobra emergency committee and prime minister Theresa May paid tribute to the "formidable courage" and professionalism of the emergency services who "ran towards a dangerous situation in order to protect the public".
The suspect, who has not been formally identified, is being held at a south London police station and the vehicle is being searched.
Britain's security minister Ben Wallace said he was a British citizen who "came from another country originally".
The BBC reports the man is from the Birmingham area.
Police said the car travelled from Birmingham to London on Monday night, arriving in the capital just after midnight
The vehicle was in the Tottenham Court Road area from approximately 1:25am until 05:55am. It was then driven around the Westminster and Whitehall area from approximately 6am until the incident.
Parliament is not currently sitting.
In March 2017, Khalid Masood, 52, killed four people on nearby Westminster Bridge and stabbed an unarmed police officer to death in the grounds of parliament before being shot dead.
It was the first of five attacks in Britain last year that police designated as terrorism, three of which used vehicles as weapons.
A number of eyewitnesses have said the silver Ford Fiesta, which was travelling westbound in Parliament Square, appeared to deliberately hit members of the public as it swerved into the opposite lane.
'I ran for my life' - eyewitness accounts
Barry Williams, a BBC member of staff based at Millbank, said: "I heard lots of screams and turned round.
"The car went on to the wrong side of the road to where cyclists were waiting at lights and ploughed into them.
"Then it swerved back across the road and accelerated as fast as possible, and hit the barrier at full pelt.
"He hit it at such speed the car actually lifted off the ground and bounced.
"Then the police just jumped. Two officers managed to leap over the security barriers and then the armed police vehicles all sped towards the scene."
Another witness, called Kirsty, said: "A car drove the wrong way round the road, drove through about 20 cyclists and crashed."
Jason Williams told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the driver had "driven at speed - more than 40 mph".
He added: "There was smoke coming out of the car...
"I saw at least 10 people lying down. I was told basically to move away, to run. I have run for my life."
Ewalina Ochab, who also saw the crash, said: "I think it looked intentional - the car drove at speed and towards the barriers."
She said: "I was walking on the other side of the road. I heard some noise and someone screamed. I turned around and I saw a silver car driving very fast close to the railings, maybe even on the pavement.
More than 10 police vehicles and at least three ambulances were at the scene outside Parliament - where firearms officers and police sniffer dogs searched the area.
British Transport Police said it was increasing patrols in England, Scotland and Wales and that its officers would be "highly visible on trains and at stations".
- BBC / Reuters
