2 police officers stabbed in London, terrorism ruled out
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Ahead of the Queen's funeral next week, an assailant stabs two police officers due to an unknown motive, leaving them in the hospital alongside himself, with no updates yet on their health conditions.
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The scene of the stabbing in Central London (BBC)
Central London witnessed the stabbing of two police officers early Friday who were admitted to the hospital as authorities eliminated terrorism as a motive, while security was massively present ahead of Queen Elizabeth II's funeral.
According to the Metropolitan Police, the attacker was tasered and arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and assaulting an emergency worker, followed by being admitted to the hospital after the incident took place around 6:00 am (0500 GMT) in the nightlife area around Leicester Square - a busy area close to the location of the Queen's coffin awaiting Monday's state funeral that lies in Westminster Hall since late Wednesday.
The Met statement read that the updates on the injured police officers are awaited, adding that "the incident is not being treated as terror-related" and "inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the incident are ongoing".
The UK's first state funeral in nearly sixty years is to be attended by leaders such as US President Joe Biden and royalty figures from around the world. Thousands of police from across the country have been deployed to London and 1,500 army personnel are deployed across the city to manage crowds and security, as tens of thousands of people are expected to pass by the coffin.
London mayor Sadiq Khan labeled the attack on the officers as "utterly appalling", stating that "these brave officers were doing their duty and assisting the public at this momentous time for our country, we owe them a huge debt of gratitude". He further disclosed that he was in close contact with the Met's new Commissioner Mark Rowley for updates.
