(AFP) – London police on Friday arrested a man at the fence surrounding the British parliament on suspicion of carrying a knife, which comes nearly three months after an Islamist terror attack in the same area.
The man was detained at 11:10 am (1010 GMT) by the Palace of Westminster in central London, police said in a statement.
“The man — aged in his 30s — was arrested on suspicion of possession of a knife. There are no reports of any injuries,” the brief statement said.
A bearded man, wearing black trousers and a grey sweatshirt, could be seen being held against the fence with his arms behind his back by a police officer.
A parliamentary spokesman said: “We are aware of an incident outside the Palace of Westminster, which is being dealt with by the Metropolitan Police.”
On March 22, knifeman Khalid Masood drove into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, killing four, and fatally stabbed a policeman guarding the gates of parliament before being shot dead by armed officers.
On April 27, a man was arrested across the street from parliament. Police said knives were recovered from him.
Khalid Mohammed Omar Ali, 27, of north London, was charged with the intention of committing acts of terrorism engaged in conduct in preparation for giving effect to that intention.
He was also charged with two counts relating to explosive substances in Afghanistan in 2012.
Friday’s arrest comes on the first anniversary of the murder of MP Jo Cox, who was shot and stabbed to death in her constituency by a man with links to neo-Nazi organisations.
More than 110,000 events were to take place around Britain between Friday and Sunday for “The Great Get Together” in honour of Cox, celebrating her belief that “we have far more in common than that which divides us”.
