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Police arrest man at Dover port, search house in London bomb manhunt

16 September 2017 20:42 (UTC +04:00)

British police arrested an 18-year-old man in the port of Dover and raided a house in a small town outside London on Saturday as they hunted for whoever planted a bomb on a commuter train that injured 30 people a day earlier, APA reports quoting Reuters.

Prime Minister Theresa May put Britain on the highest security level of “critical” late on Friday, meaning another attack may be imminent, and deployed soldiers and armed police to strategic locations such as nuclear plants and defense sites.

In what authorities called a “very significant” development, officers arrested a man at about 7.50 a.m. (0650 GMT) in Dover, from where passenger ferries sail to France. Five hours later they raided a property in Sunbury, a commuter town southwest of London, and evacuated nearby premises as a precaution.

Reuters photographs showed police cordons in a modest suburban street in Sunbury, in the county of Surrey, around 11 miles (18 km) from Parsons Green where the bomb exploded.

“This is a very significant arrest. The police have made very good progress but the operation is ongoing,” said interior minister Amber Rudd, adding that the threat level remained at “critical”.

“There is no doubt that this was a serious IED (improvised explosive device) and it was good fortune that it did so little damage.”

In what was the fifth major terrorism attack in Britain this year, the home-made bomb shot flames through a packed commuter train during the Friday morning rush hour in west London but apparently failed to detonate fully.

The militant group Islamic State claimed responsibility.

According to media reports, the bomb was attached to a timer, unlike other recent blasts which have typically been suicide bombs.

Pictures showed a slightly charred white plastic bucket with wires coming out of the top in a supermarket shopping bag on the floor of a train carriage.

The Parsons Green station where the attack took place reopened by Saturday morning.

Armed police patrolled the streets of London near government departments in Westminster and were guarding Premier League soccer grounds hosting matches on Saturday, including the national stadium at Wembley.

Cressida Dick, Britain’s top police officer, sought to reassure the public as she joined colleagues patrolling the entertainment district on the south bank of the Thames.

“Yesterday we saw a cowardly and indiscriminate attack which could have resulted in many lives being lost,” she said. “London has not stopped after other terrible attacks and it will not stop after this one.”