One person has been killed and ten more injured after pedestrians were hit by a white van driver near a renowned north London mosque in the latest terror attack to rock Britain.
A 48-year-old man has been arrested after the van ploughed into a crowd near Finsbury Park Mosque, as they finished taraweeh, Ramadan evening prayers.
Brave bystanders wrestled the suspect to the floor and pinned him down until officers arrived, at around 20 past midnight, after he allegedly screamed ‘I want to kill all Muslims’.
The congregation of victims were heroically trying to save a man who had collapsed at a bus stop, according to eyewitness.
Emergency service crews were also spotted trying giving cardiac massages to the injured in a desperate bid to save them, but unconfirmed reports that two other suspects fled the van were denied by police.
The police operation is being handled by counter-terrorism units, while the suspect has been taken to hospital and will be detained once released before undergoing a mental health assessment.
Finsbury Park Mosque has undergone wholesale changes under new leader Mohammed Kozbar, since the days when hook-handed Abu Hamza was imam from 1997 until 2003.
Mr Kozbar told The Sun: ‘Whoever did this, he did it to hurt people and it’s a terrorist attack. We call it a terrorist attack as we called it in Manchester, Westminster and London Bridge.’
Jeremy Corbyn has expressed his shock at the incident, which took place in the heart of his Islington North constituency.
He said: ‘I’m totally shocked at the incident at Finsbury Park tonight. I’ve been in touch with the mosques, police and Islington council regarding the incident.
‘My thoughts are with those and the community affected by this awful event.’
Prime Minister Theresa May described the attack as a ‘terrible incident’, adding: ‘All my thoughts are with those who have been injured, their loved ones and the emergency services on the scene.’
Witnesses told MailOnline that they saw two additional suspects run away once the van had stopped, although these have now been quashed by the Met.
Atikur Arhman, 41, from Finsbury Park, said: ‘There was three people in there. They caught one and are looking for another two.
‘An elderly man who just came from the mosque, he just fainted and people were picking him up when the van he just sped up and ran them over when the guy was one the floor.’
source: dailymail.co.uk
