United Kingdom: taxi explosion in Liverpool considered “terrorist act”

Published on : 11/15/2021 – 13:48

The explosion of a taxi near a hospital in Liverpool in the north of England on Sunday was called a “terrorist act” by police, authorities said on Monday (November 15th).

The attack, which left one dead – the perpetrator – and one injured, took place on Sunday morning, just as the UK was commemorating the victims of wars, on “Remembrance Sunday”. It occurred just before 11:00 a.m. (local and GMT) on Sunday, as the nation silently prayed a few hundred yards from Liverpool Cathedral, where hundreds of soldiers, veterans and members of the public gathered to a tribute.

Injured in the explosion, the taxi driver has been called a “hero” by politicians and tabloids who said he had saved the lives of people. According to The Daily Mail, the driver noticed that his passenger looked “suspicious” and locked him in the taxi, before escaping.

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Anti-terrorism service investigation

Investigators believe the explosive device was “made” by the passenger who took him to the vehicle, where he died in the explosion. “Although the motivations for this incident remain to be clarified, given the circumstances, it has been classified as a terrorist incident and the counterterrorism police services are in charge of the continuation of the investigation,” said Russ Jackson, in charge of the region’s counterterrorism police.

The spokesperson added that the police believed they knew the identity of the passenger but could not reveal this information. At this press conference, he added that a fourth man, aged 20, was arrested on Monday.

As part of the investigation, three men – aged 29, 26 and 21 – were arrested in the Kensington area of ​​Liverpool under the Terrorism Act, police said on Sunday evening.

With AFP and Reuters