Armed officers make terror arrest as man carrying `bag of knives` tackled in Whitehall

The heart of UK democracy was back on terror alert this afternoon after armed officers arrested a man carrying a rucksack containing knives near the Houses of Parliament. He was detained in London`s Parliament Street – just yards from last month`s Westminster atrocity in which ‘lone-wolf’ terrorist Khalid Masood massacred five people including Police Constable Keith Palmer. The 27-year-old man was held by the Metropolitan Police Service`s (MPS`) Specialist Firearms Command following a stop and search as part of an ongoing operation. Officers have recovered a number of knives in his possession. He was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism. He is now in custody in a south London police station. The bearded suspect, dressed in dark clothing, was wrestled to the ground on a traffic island at the Parliament end of Whitehall, close the Foreign Office and the entrance to Downing Street. According to eye witnesses, three knives were seen “on the ground” including a large bread knife close to a brown rucksack. The suspect was detained at the scene for several minutes within view of the public before he was eventually taken away in a police vehicle. The MPS says one man has been arrested. There are no reports of injuries. The statement added: “A 27-year-old man was arrested in Parliament Street at 2.22pm, junction with Parliament Square, by armed officers from the Met`s Specialist Firearms Command. “He was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism. Knives have been recovered from him. “He is being detained under the Terrorism Act and is in custody in a south London police station. “Detectives from the Counter Terrorism Command are continuing their investigation, and as a result of this arrest there is no immediate known threat.” Armed and unarmed officers are still on the scene, which is close to where Masood launched a terror attack on March 22 that killed five people, including PC Palmer. Masood ploughed his car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge, before stabbing the officer to death on the forecourt of the Palace of Westminster. In a tweet, Transport for London (TfL) said the area was closed due to a police incident, and that long delays should be expected. Theresa May led MPs in a chorus of praise for the bravery of officers that made the arrest. Speaking ahead of an election campaign event this evening, the Prime Minister said: “I think it shows that our police and intelligence and security services are on the alert as they always are, looking to keep us safe and secure. “I would say that we owe a huge debt of gratitude to these people, many of whom are unseen, unheard, yet the job they do day-in, day-out to keep us secure is a really important one and we should thank them for it.” Tory MP James Cleverly, who knew PC Palmer, branded the actions of officers on Thursday (April 27) “awe-inspiring”. He tweeted: “Once again police officers here in Westminster rush to tackle a knife wielding attacker just a month after losing colleague Keith Palmer.” “The bravery of these men and women is awe-inspiring,” he added. Conservative MP David Mackintosh wrote: “Great work by @metpoliceuk once again. Thank you for keeping us safe.” Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “Thanks to all officers who dealt swiftly & professionally with the incident in Whitehall.” At around 4.15pm on Thursday, the MPS started to open up the road.