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Buckingham Palace attack: Terror suspect reached for 4ft sword and shouted 'Allahu Akbar' Buckingham Palace attack: Terror suspect reached for 4ft sword and shouted 'Allahu Akbar'
(35 minutes later)
A man detained outside Buckingham Palace in an incident where three police officers were injured had “reached for a 4ft sword”, Scotland Yard has said. A man detained outside Buckingham Palace in an incident where three police officers were injured reached for a 4ft sword while shouting “Allahu Akbar”, Scotland Yard has said.
The suspect, who is being questioned by counter-terror detectives, is accused of deliberately driving a car at a market police vehicle outside the Queen’s official residence on Friday night. The suspect, who is being questioned by counter-terror detectives, is accused of attacking police outside the Queen’s official residence on Friday night.
Commander Dean Haydon, of the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terrorism branch, said: “Uniformed officers then confronted the driver of the vehicle and during that confrontation the driver reached for a 4ft sword that was in the passenger footwell. Police are treating the attack as an act of terrorism and believe the culprit was acting alone, but said they are keeping an “open mind” over his motives.
"CS gas was used as part of the arrest and during the struggle the individual repeatedly shouted the words ‘Allahu Akbar’." Scotland Yard said the incident started shortly after 8.30pm, when a blue Toyota Prius “deliberately drove” at a police van and stopped in front of it in a restricted area on Constitution Hill.
A 26-year-old man from the Luton area is in custody at a central London police station. “As police officers challenged the driver, who was the only occupant in the car, he reached for what we now know to be a 4ft sword, which was in the front passenger footwell,”  a spokesperson added.
  “The officers acted very quickly to detain him. During a struggle the three officers sustained minor injuries. The man, who repeatedly shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’, was incapacitated with CS spray.”
A 26-year-old man from the Luton area, who has not been named, was taken into custody at central London police station.
He has been arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and assault on police, as well as under the Terrorism Act 2000.
Three unarmed officers, from the local Westminster force, were injured during the struggle to detain the suspect.
Two officers were taken by ambulance to hospital with minor cuts and discharged a short time later, while the third did not require hospital treatment.
Commander Dean Haydon, the head of the Met’s counter terrorism command, paid tribute to their “bravery and professionalism”.
“Their vigilance, courage and the swiftness of their response demonstrates how our officers are protecting the public at this time,” he added.
“Officers from the Counter Terrorism Command are now investigating and searches are being carried out in the Luton area today.
“We believe the man was acting alone and we are not looking for other suspects at this stage. 
“While we cannot speculate on what the man was intending to do - this will be determined during the course of the investigation - it is only right that we investigate this as a terrorist incident at this time.”
Commander Haydon said the incident was a “timely reminder” that the national terror threat level remains at severe, meaning further attacks are considered highly likely in the UK.
He added: “The police, together with the security services, are doing everything we can to protect the public and we already have an enhanced policing plan over the bank holiday weekend to keep the public safe.
“We continue to urge the public to be alert but not alarmed and report anything suspicious.”
Police are urging anyone who witnessed Friday's incident or has any information to contact a confidential hotline on 0800 789 321.