UK: Van Mows Down Pedestrians Near London Mosque

Multiple casualties are reported in London’s Finsbury Park, where a vehicle drove into pedestrians, many of whom are believed to be Muslims coming out of the local mosque after prayers. Police have arrested one person and ambulances are on the scene.

London’s Metropolitan Police said in a statement that “there are a number of casualties being worked on at the scene” of the apparent attack, which took place at Seven Sisters Road.

Social media reports indicate that a white van hit people close to the Finsbury Park Mosque. Multiple reports say the attacker is a white male.

Videos purporting to show the aftermath of the incident emerged on social media, in which several people could be seen lying motionless on the ground.

Twitter user Didier, who says he was at the scene at the time the incident unfolded, posted a video showing the arrest of a suspected attacker by police. Didier wrote that he saw at least seven people injured as a result of the attack, including three of them seriously.

The London Ambulance Service has so far said that they “sent a number of resources to an incident in Seven Sisters Road.”

Before the police arrived at the scene, bystanders reportedly apprehended the alleged attacker and pinned him to the ground.

Armed police arrived at the scene and inspected the van used in the attack. The scene has been cordoned off.

Some eyewitnesses report that the driver veered off the road into the crowd on purpose. The van “slowly and intentionally accelerated into a crowded cafe outside a mosque,” LBC cited an eyewitness as saying.

According to unconfirmed reports cited by the Evening Standard, a man wielding a knife came out of the van after it mounted the pavement and stabbed at least one person.

While police have not yet categorized the incident, the chairman of Finsbury Park mosque, Mohammed Kozbar, labelled it a “terrorist attack,” likening it to the recent terrorist attacks that rocked Manchester and London.

“Whoever did this, he did it to hurt people and it’s a terrorist attack,” Kozbar told the Sun newspaper.

Agitated bystanders approached police cordons, demanding that they disclose the known details and identity of the attacker, RT’s Ruptly agency’s live video feed showed. Officers replied that they “won’t release names,” and continued to call it a “serious, major incident.”

The London Fire Brigade reported that they are assisting the police and ambulance services in dealing with the incident.