UK counter-terrorist police treat attempted murder as ‘terrorist incident’

British counter terrorism police said on Sunday they were investigating an attempted murder, which has been declared a “terrorist incident”, according to a statement.

Counter Terrorism Police South East said it was investigating a stabbing of a 19-year-old man on Saturday evening in Stanwell, in the south of England, after reports of a man shouting racist comments while carrying a baseball bat and a knife.

A 50-year-old man was arrested on Saturday night and the 19-year-old-man sustained non-life threatening injuries and remains in hospital.

“It has hallmarks of a terror event, inspired by the far right, and therefore it has been declared a terrorism incident”, said Assistant Commissioner, Neil Basu, the head of Counter Terrorism Policing.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s office wrote in a Tweet “Vile, hateful far-right extremism has no place in our society.”