Share

British PM defiant after London attack

London - In a sweeping speech before the House of Commons on Thursday, British Prime Minister Theresa May said the man who killed three people on Wednesday before he was shot dead was born in Britain and once came under investigation for links to religious extremism.

British officials named the attacker as Khalid Masood, a 52-year-old with criminal convictions who was living in the West Midlands, which includes the central city of Birmingham.

ISIS on Thursday claimed responsibility for the attack by Masood who plowed a SUV into pedestrians on one of London's famous bridges and then stabbed a police officer to death.

Police raided properties in London and Birmingham, and made eight arrests.

Denies enemies victory

May set an unyielding tone on Thursday, saluting the heroism of police as well as the ordinary actions of everyone in the British capital who went about their lives in the aftermath.

"As I speak, millions will be boarding trains and airplanes to travel to London and to see for themselves the greatest city on Earth," she told the House of Commons.

"It is in these actions - millions of acts of normality - that we find the best response to terrorism. A response that denies our enemies their victory, that refuses to let them win, that shows we will never give in."

May later visited a London hospital to meet victims of Wednesday's attack and to thank the hospital staff who had helped them.

She said people from 11 countries were among the victims, including 12 Britons, four South Koreans, three French, two Romanians, two Greeks and two Irish and one person each from Germany, Poland, China, Italy and the United States.

Uniformed policeman

Parliament held a moment of silence to honour the slain officer, Keith Palmer, a 15-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police and a former soldier, as well as the other victims.

In the 1 000-year-old Westminster Hall, the oldest part of Parliament's buildings, politicians, journalists and parliamentary staff lined up to sign a book of condolences for the victims. Among them was a uniformed policeman, who wrote: "Keith, my friend, will miss you."


We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
41% - 397 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
59% - 561 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.2%
Platinum
910.50
+1.5%
Palladium
1,011.50
+1.0%
Gold
2,221.35
+1.2%
Silver
24.87
+0.9%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.8%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.8%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE