Armed police have sealed off a mosque in London after a man was fatally stabbed in a nearby street. The Metropolitan police said the victim was found with stab wounds in Elmton Court, Cunningham Place, near Regent’s Park, at about 6.15pm on Thursday. He was treated at the scene with help from London ambulance service paramedics but later died in hospital, the force said. The Met tweeted that the attack was not terror-related, and said officers continue to work at the scene.
Video from outside the mosque shared on social media showed armed police at the gates to the London Central mosque as a helicopter circled overhead. Bahir Moulana told the Press Association that, as he was walking towards the mosque, police were pushing people back before they closed the main gate. With a number of armed officers at the scene, the 39-year-old said it gave him the “jitters”, especially following the recent attack at two mosques in New Zealand.
“I saw all the blue lights and my heart was in my mouth,” Moulana said. With worshippers eventually let out of the building, he added: “There was one girl who said she saw two guys run in. Someone else told me the police were chasing them.”
Moulana said he saw two people being detained and put in handcuffs by the police at the mosque.(theguardian)…[+]