welcome to a bbc news special. i'm mike embley, in london, where a lone attacker has killed four people, including a police officer, outside the houses of parliament. britain's prime minister has condemned what she called a "sick and depraved terrorist attack". the attacker drove into pedestrians on westminster bridge causing catastrophic injuries. fani fan i heard a big crunch, like a car crash and the vehicle was coming out so crash and the vehicle was coming out so quickly and i saw some people hit in front of me. on the side of the road that was a body and when i looked there was another and they're happy to be a body in the water as well. police shot dead the attacker. they say they know his identity and believe he was motivated by islamic—extremism. the lights of the eiffel tower in paris were switched off as a mark of respect — world leaders have condemned the attack. the british prime minister has

condemned what she called a "sick and depraved terrorist attack" in london that left a policeman, three civilians and the attacker dead. the officer has been named as constable keith palmer, who was a8, a husband and a father. he had been in service for 15 years. the country's top anti—terrorism officer has said the police are assuming the attacker was motivated by islamic—extremism. at least forty people were injured including members of a school party from france, five south korean visitors, two romanian tourists and three other policemen. this was the sequence of events which started unfolding at 2:40 on wednesday afternoon local time.

the man drove a car across westminster bridge, mounting the pavement, hitting many pedestrians, killing at least two of them and causing some very serious injuries before crashing into railings outside the houses of parliament. he then ran through the gates of the palace of westminster armed with a knife and stabbed a police officer who later died, despite the best efforts of a team of emergency workers and a uk foreign office minister. the attacker was shot dead by police who rushed to the scene in the shadow of big ben. scotland yard's top anti—terrorism officer acting deputy commissioner mark rowley gave this update. one of those who died today was a police officer, keith palmer. 15 yea rs police officer, keith palmer. 15 years service, 48—years—old and a husband and father. he was someone who left for work expecting to return home after his shift and he had every right to expect that.

three members of the public also lost their lives. family liaison officers have been deployed to support them. the suspected attacker was shot dead by an armed officer. in total we have had five people died today. i will not comment as to the identity of the attacker but our working assumption is he was inspired by international terrorism. approximately a0 inspired by international terrorism. approximately ao people have been injured, including several with serious injuries including three police officers, to with serious injuries. our political editor, laura kuenssberg was inside parliament when the attack took place. run. go. move. gunfire. the sound of gunfire replacing the bells of big ben.

go! go, move yourselves, go! the centre of our government, normally a safe place. not today. members of the public, politicians, the hundreds of staff for whom this is work. in politics, for some, a home from home. sprinting for safety outside. the swat team turned up with paramedics, and they asked us to abandon our vehicle and just walk away. there was a body and when i looked further up, there was another body. and then, when i looked over the side of the bridge, there appeared to be a body in the water as well. sick. to be honest, it is sick to witness these things. and right now, still, my hands are shaking. a car, a weapon, ploughing through members of the public

on westminster bridge, normally a tourist spot. today, a site of danger. two killed, many others seriously hurt. and then the car, only a couple of hundred yards away, careered around to smash into pa rliament‘s gates. a policeman gave his life to stop the attacker going further. the prime minister had been meeting cabinet colleagues in parliament. but was hurried out and then through westminster‘s backstreets to safety. and inside parliament, lockdown. i, with hundreds of others, bundled back from the front entrance, waiting through fear and confusion. a police officer told me someone was killed just yards outside. we heard three or four shots on the right, or which sounded like shots, and then everyone turned and ran back through here and then...

well, we know as much as we know from now on in. but i think generally, a lot of people were walking through that area and most people heard three or four shots. did you hear anything? just enormous noise at the front of portcullis house ten minutes ago. lots of police and security guards shouting, people running past the building, general sense of panic. everyone ordered to the back of the building until it was safe to do otherwise. there are at least a couple of 100 people here inside portcullis house. this is really the heart of where westminster does its business and we are all part of a lockdown after what has happened outside. a police officer has told me one man was shot out the front. a few mps have told me they have heard three or four gunshots as they were on their way to vote. this is obviously a place that is very tightly guarded at all times, but there is a sense of shock that, finally, it appears that something

so serious has happened right here in the heart of westminster. then, in the chamber that sat on through all sorts of situations, wars and peace, was interrupted. order! i am now going to suspend the sitting of the house. this house is now suspended, but please wait here. because this place was the focus of danger. mps and staff watched from their windows as the swat team arrived. is this the attacker? a first aid kit thrown in to help, emergency services trying to save him and his victims. while inside, those of us who came here to work today, or to visit or to be part of this place, waited tensely, corridors full of staff who couldn't leave and didn't want to stay,

caught up in an attack which stopped the business of democracy. it's just after five o'clock. we still don't really know what's going on. this group of students was brought here just for the day to see how parliament works. little did they know what kind of situation would unfold. and frankly, it's still very hard to believe what's really happened here today. tonight, the meaning of this attempt seems clear. the prime minister, obviously angered, and saddened, but resolute. these streets of westminster, home to the world's oldest parliament, are ingrained with a spirit of freedom that echoes in some of the furthest corners of the globe. and the values our parliament represents — democracy, freedom, human rights, the rule of law — command the admiration and respect of free people everywhere. that is why it is a target for those who reject those values.

but let me make it clear today, as i have had cause to do before, any attempt to defeat those values to violence and terror is doomed to failure. the human cost is only just becoming clear. an attack that in theory many expected but it is a shock to our parliament, to our country. whatever the motive, an effort to stop democracy in its track, a new awful page of history in a place where every corner tells a very shared past. the attack started when a man drove his vehicle at speed across westminster bridge — towards the houses of parliament —— hitting many pedestrians

in his path — two of whom died and several others suffered catastrophic injuries. they included some police officers who'd been attending an event nearby. our chief correspondent gavin hewitt reports in more detail on the attack on westminster bridge. early afternoon with the traffic flowing over westminster bridge. to the right, a grey hyundai starts crossing the bridge and then swerves onto the pavement. a woman jumps into the thames. others are knocked to the ground and under traffic as the vehicle races towards parliament square. left behind on the bridge, a group of horrified visitors. on the ground, dozens of injured people, some lying on the pavement, many bleeding, one trapped under a bus. some of the injuries were described as catastrophic. a big sort of crunch, sounded like a car crash, but almost that crunch of a wheel on a kerb. i saw the vehicle mount the kerb and it was coming out so quickly, and i saw some people being hit in front of me.

ijumped to the left into the road. i think one of the guys had been hit, but fortunately was kept past me. and then looked around me in shock because i could see bodies, and it was all, yeah, real shock. some people trying to escape the vehicle ended up in the road, cared for by bewildered passers—by. we heard what sounded like metal on metal, and we assumed it was a collision. but then we looked outside and i saw one person down, then another, and i saw five people in all down on the tarmac and on the pavement and then i understood that it must have been deliberate. there were moments when the injured were comforted by others who had been on the bridge. shortly after, paramedics from nearby st thomas' hospital arrived. the woman who jumped into the thames was rescued but is in a critical condition. many on the bridge had severe injuries and two of them later died. the police believe there was only one attacker involved here, but their task over the next 2a

or 36 hours will be to trace every link to that individual and to satisfy themselves there was no wider plot here. gavin hewitt, bbc news, westminster. british prime minister theresa may was in parliament when the attack happened and was immediately ta ken to safety by her police protection team. mrs may has since chaired a meeting of cobra the cabinet committee that deals with emergencies as the attacker‘s identity was being examined and questions were asked about how someone managed to penetrate pa rliament‘s enhanced security system carrying a weapon. our security correspondent gordon corera has this assessment of the attacker and the investigation. the attacker shot by police lies on a stretcher, then still alive. his weapon, a large knife, apparently lies on the pavement next to him. now the hunt is on to identify the man and understand what lay behind this attack. who was he and how did he get so close? other clues for investigators

will include the car that was used so brutally as a weapon. was it his or a hire car? armed police have regularly carried out exercises like this one to secure parliament and the area around it. but today the response was for real. the met responded in line with our plans for a marauding terrorist attack. that response included uniformed and specialist firearms officers. we now, of course, have an ongoing operation and while we currently believe there was only one attacker i'm sure people will understand we are taking every precaution in locking down and searching the area as thoroughly and exhaustively as possible. in recent years security in parliament has been tightened after intruders managed to get inside. cameras, bollards, armed guards and x—ray scanners are all in place. today an attacker did breach the initial perimeter but police

dealt with him quickly. the security services say that 13 attacks have been stopped since 2013. m15 and the police have certainly improved their ability to detect those behind the plots. but, we've also seen those planning attacks switch to less sophisticated techniques which can be harder for the intelligence agencies to spot. a year ago exactly saw an attack on brussels airport and the metro. that was more sophisticated than what we saw in westminster today, including the use of explosives. last weekend paris's orly airport showed how sometimes lone individuals are now moving towards more low—tech means. a man grabbed a gun from a soldier but was shot. recent attacks in berlin and nice showed the carnage a vehicle could inflict on innocent people, as happened today on westminster bridge. in many recent cases attackers have been inspired by so—called islamic state, although not necessarily in direct

contact with the group. well, it's very hard to prevent an attack, if you like, a low—tech attack like this from happening once an individual is inspired to carry one out. if you haven't got the intelligence to know it is happening it's very, very hard to prevent lives from being lost once the attack actually takes place. a wide reaching and urgent investigation into this incident is now under way. the attacker may be dead but the priority will be finding out if he worked alone and if this threat has really passed. gordon corera, bbc news. france and germany have been reeling from recent terror attacks in their own countries. french president francois hollande tweeted in solidarity that he'd sent his condolences to theresa may, saying the attack

has cast a shadow over the uk. the germany chancellor angela merkel said germany stands resolutely with britain in the fight against terror. the president of the european parliament, antonio tajani, has also expressed his solidarity, and suggested the attack was inspired by the so—called islamic state terror group. in the name of the european parliament, i want to express to the uk, to the british parliament, my solidarity, l solidarity. we need to stop the terrorists, we need to work altogether against daesh. freedom and democracy are stronger than isis. dutch prime minister mark rutte posted on facebook: "the heart of british democracy is bleeding, "but the values westminster represents are stronger than hate." from canada, justin trudeau's statement said: the attack on the uk parliament is an attack on democracies around the world. and australian prime minister malcolm turnbull said his country

stands in resolute solidarity with the people of britain in the war against terrorism. let's hear more now from two eyewitnesses. in a moment, we'll bring you the reaction of kevin schofield, who works in an office overlooking parliament square. but first, here's richard tice, who was coming out of westminster underground station as the events unfolded. he spoke to the bbc‘s daniel sandford. i was coming out of the tube, westminster, about 2a0 5p. it was clear something had happened. iwas up clear something had happened. iwas up should —— ushered onto westminster bridge. i looked across the west pavement and there were bodies, people lying on the bridge, being attended to so moved up into the middle of the bridge, looked further down the south side, it was clear there were also bodies, people lying on the floor of the western pavement and when i spoke to someone who'd clearly been on the bridge at the time, they said the car had mounted the pavement, or a vehicle,

and literally driven the whole way from south to north up the bridge knocking people over. i counted eight people the length of the bridge from south to north, at least eight. one was clearly in a shocked moment so you eight. one was clearly in a shocked moment so you are eight. one was clearly in a shocked moment so you are not quite sure what is going on but as i looked up and down, they were being attended to. and as i was standing there, i read in our ambulance came over, landed in parliament square and an incredible number of security personnel, obviously from the ambulance service and paramedics but also some plainclothes people, people with masks on, with machine—guns so the quantity of armed personnel arriving was very significant very quickly and as i looked, they were vehicles arriving from the embankment, both police vehicles, vehicles with lights on and then a grey van with a number of security personnel so, in a sense,

reassuring to know that there are so many armed security personnel looking after our safety so quickly after what was a pretty dramatic event. first of all, we heard a loud bang, which sounded like a car crash so we bang, which sounded like a car crash so we looked out from the office and there was a commotion, people running about, shouting, finding out what had happened. we thought there might have been a bus crash because there are buses going up and down in there are buses going up and down in the next thing, i looked down on the outer perimeter of the parliamentary gate, which is secured all day, policed by armed policemen and you don't get anything past but a man rushed the gate, storm through the gate, the policeman went down, another policeman went to approach him, the man then got up with his arm outstretched and he had a knife in his hand. towards the policeman. i couldn't quite see with a great

vantage point but there was gunfire and subsequently i knew it was something serious and they were armed policeman running around. i could see a car which had crashed on the side of the westminster bridge. that would seem to be what the bang was. and i could see the car is still there. right now, was. and i could see the car is stillthere. right now, i was. and i could see the car is still there. right now, i could see it. the home secretary has said the government's top priority is the safety of british people. the british people will be united in working together to defeat those who would harm our shared values.

i want to thank the emergency services for the quick response, their bravery and their professionalism. i have been briefed by the met police and by the security services and the security minister has also been updated. this is an ongoing incident and the government will continue to be updated. the prime minister will chair cobra today. the government's top priority is the security of its people and i urge everyone to remain calm but to be vigilant and if they see anything they are concerned about, they should report it to police. we have the best police, the best security services in the world. and we must make sure that we let them get on with doing theirjob. the british people will be united in working together to defeat those who would harm our shared values. values

of democracy, tolerance and the rule of democracy, tolerance and the rule of law. values symbolised by the houses of parliament. values that will never be destroyed. the london mayor sadiq khan said there would be additional police officers on the city streets to keep londoners and visitors safe. today london suffered a horrific attack on the heart of westminster. my attack on the heart of westminster. my heart goes out to those who have lost loved ones and those affected by today's attack. tragically, a police officer who was doing his job to keep our streets safe lost his life. my thoughts are with his family and on behalf of londoners, i wa nt to family and on behalf of londoners, i want to thank the police and the emergency services who were working in difficult circumstances to keep us in difficult circumstances to keep us safe. my message is to those who wa nt to us safe. my message is to those who want to destroy our way of life, you will not succeed, you will not divide us, we will not be cloud by

terrorists. several big questions of course. the police believe they do know who did it. the prime minister said there was only one attacker. the fact that the official threat level is staying as it was, at severe, suggests the authorities don't feel there is continuous threat. the working assumption according to police is that this was inspired by international terror. it is certainly the most serious attack since thejuly certainly the most serious attack since the july seven certainly the most serious attack since thejuly seven bombings in 2005. pc keith palmer was stabbed to death at the gates of parliament. he was on armed defending the palace of westminster. he was a husband and father, a8. 15 years service in the police. served in the royal artillery. much mention being made of the forest —— foreign office minister, tobias ellwood, who gave

mouth—to—mouth was a cetacean to pc palmer. tobias ellwood's brother died in the bali bombings in 2002. we leave you with some images of the day westminster came under attack. order! i'm now going to suspended the sitting of the house. we will all move forward together, never giving in to terror. five people

died today, including the attacker. three members of the public died in police constable keith palmer. police are saying a0 people were injured, some seriously, including three police, two of those seriously. much more any time on the website. thank you for watching. good morning. we have an area of rain across the central and southern parts of england drifting its way further west through this morning and here we have temperatures up to six degrees. rain in southern scotland, wet and windy here in the north of scotland, the north—west in particular has light winds and clear skies and lower temperatures, reaching maybe —8 for some. the wet weather moves into the bulk of wales before eight o'clock in the morning and into parts of the south—west as well. the rain becomes light and patchy towards the south—east, something brighter behind. northern england is dry with a shower or two over high ground and fair bit of cloud in scotland and ireland.

a little rain to go with that. northern scotland after a cold start stays chilly through the middle part of the morning and we get regular sunshine as well. light wind as well. a decent start to the day. it will be a decent day for many parts of the north and east of the uk as rain is confined to the south and south—west into the afternoon with a breeze and that will temper the temperatures a little bit. 12—15 for cardiff and london. eight or nine degrees in glasgow and newcastle. through the evening again along the south coast we have thick cloud and outbreaks of rain. rain towards the northern isles but in between fine and dry with clear skies and light winds. that means it will be a chilly start once again on friday. decent rain to be had on friday with the weather front drifting away

towards the south. high pressure is firmly in charge all the way to the end of the week and into the weekend. friday again a cold start for some particular southern scotland and northern england we have light winds but here will be a lovely day with plenty of sunshine in light wind. breeze top and tail of the country, a little bit of rain in the south—west and maybe a little bit of rain towards the northern isles. decent day temperature wise for many. a little bit higher, ten or 11 degrees for glasgow and belfast. 13 again for cardiff and london. high pressure remains in charge of our weather through this weekend. that will bring a lot of fine and dry weather, more in the way of cloud developing as we reach sunday. saturday, a decent day across large parts of the uk, chilly start but sunshine through the day and it should reach 1a or 15 in the south—east and 13 also for belfast and edinburgh. always a bit of a breeze blowing across the southern half of the uk through the weekend. more cloud around on sunday but many places will be fine and dry and some spells of sunshine. winds lighter the further

north you are. dry through the weekend, if you get sunshine it will be warm but chilly by night. the latest headlines from bbc news. i'm mike embley. the british prime minister has condemned what she called a sick and depraved terrorist attack outside the houses of parliament in london. three civilians and a police officer were killed by a lone attacker — who was then shot dead. the murdered police officer, who was unarmed and guarding the gates to parliament has been named as keith palmer. he was a8, a husband and a father. he suffered multiple stab wounds. the other victims have not yet been named. police say they know the identity of the attacker, but have given no details. the country's top anti—terrorism officer told journalists the attack was probably motivated by islamic extremism but no group has admitted responsibiity. the injured victims included five people from south korea, two from romania and several french schoolchildren. the lights of the eiffel tower in paris were switched off at midnight on wednesday night as a mark of respect. five people are dead,

including a police officer, following a terror attack near the houses of parliament in london. a single attacker armed with a knife drove a car into pedestrians before fatally stabbing an unarmed police officer. police believe the attack was inspired by international terrorism. john sweeney reports. westminster today, terror strikes by heart of london. go, move yourself, go! at around 240 this afternoon a car drove into westminster bridge, ploughs into people in its path. the vehicle crosses the breach, passes

big benn and then slams into the railings to the left. the attacker armed with a knife runs around the corner and into the main gate of westminster. he stabs a police officer. i witnessed state is the approach the second officer, clutching his knife, he was shot. the first people to be hit were standing on the south bank of the river by this kiosk. this danish teenager saw the horror. people were just laying on the ground with blood in theirface. the south side? yes, the south side. how many bodies did you see?

the driver coming from the direction of waterloo thought at first the attacker had lost control of the vehicle. it started speaking up. i thought the light changes. he speeded up, there is a small shop. he has taken three victims at least. i was thinking, it was... the second and the third and i stopped in the middle of the road. people being hit. people flying like a football.

i feel sorry for one of the gentlemen, i did not know what happened to him but it is not something i want to see every day. did you see the gentlemen driving the car? my attention was not on that. after 30 seconds i realised it was not a hit—and—run, taking a group of people and keep going back, . .. group of people and keep going back,... our next eyewitness of foreign polish foreign minister found this footage. we heard what sounded like metal on metal and we assumed it was a collision but then we looked outside and i saw one person down. i reached for my telephone out of habit and isil five people down on the car marque and pavement and i understood it must have been deliberate. —— tarmac.

woman was pulled out of the river injured but alive. the attacker then crashed his car into the ravings just beyond big ben. hitting it appears another innocent bystander. my appears another innocent bystander. my wife and i came up and we looked across to parliament and there was a car crashed into the gate. the police officers were running with machine—guns and there was a man down right next to the car and after it settled down i thought, i do not like what is going on and i took a wife and a friend and went behind some concrete. this witness heard the car crash and ran to the window overlooking the square. we saw a man in black clothes come through the gates, where people normally drive

cars, into the palace yard. he had something in hand. it looked like a stick of some sort. he was challenged by a couple of policemen in yellow jackets and challenged by a couple of policemen in yellowjackets and one of the policemen fell down and we could see the man in black moving his arm in a way suggesting that he was either stabbing or striking the yellow jacketed policeman and one of the policemen then ran to get help, which was very, very quick to come. and then it is. i would say 15 yards, perhaps, to plainclothed guy is with guns shouted at him, art and what sounded like a warning. he ignored it and they shot to three times and he fell. a foreign office

minister administered the kiss of life to the man. a terror attack on the heart of our democracy. inside the heart of our democracy. inside the chamber, the deputy speaker halted proceedings. the chamber, the deputy speaker halted proceedingslj the chamber, the deputy speaker halted proceedings. i am now going to suspend the seating is of the house. the house is now suspended up please wait here. these were the scenes in parliament today. chaos within but murder without. john sweeney reporting there. let's go live to greg olsen. how is this looking right now? even at this time you would expect traffic along this busy road. you can seejust behind me, at the end of westminster

bridge. there are several buses that the not finish theirjourney. it is essentially still a crime scene. the only people around here are police officers. this part of westminster remains and tightly sealed. clearly the most serious terror attacks since thejuly the most serious terror attacks since the july seven attack the most serious terror attacks since thejuly seven attack in 2005, a very iconic place to do it not just to kill but cause fear even though the threat to individuals, relatively speaking, is tiny? absolutely. you are right that it could not have been more central. one of the most famous landmarks in the world attacked today and pictures beamed around the world. what is quite telling now, behind me scotla nd what is quite telling now, behind me scotland yard, the lights are on.

they are working through the night to try to investigate what they can find about the man who committed these crimes. what we have learned from last note is the attacker was carrying two large knives when he drove along westminster bridge and he attacked a police officer with one of those knives. the car is evident and they will be looking at the trail of the attacker left but also on social media who he was in contact with. thank you very much for that. late on wednesday evening, the british prime minister chaired a meeting of cobra — the cabinet committee that deals with emergencies — as the attacker‘s identity was being examined — afterwards she made this statement outside number 10 downing street. i have just chaired a meeting of the government's emergency committee, cobra, following the sick and depraved terrorist attack on the streets of our capital this afternoon.

the full details of exactly what happened are still emerging. but, having been updated by police and security officials, i can confirm that this appalling incident began when a single attacker drove his vehicle into pedestrians walking across westminster bridge, killing two people and injuring many more, including three police officers. this attacker, who was armed with a knife, then ran towards parliament, where he was confronted by the police officers who keep us and our democratic institutions safe. tragically, one officer was killed. the terrorist was also shot dead. the united kingdom's threat level has been set at severe for some time and this will not change. acting deputy commissioner rowley will give a further operational update later this evening. our thoughts and prayers go out

to all who have been affected; to the victims themselves and their family and friends who waved their loved ones off, but will not now be welcoming them home. for those of us who were in parliament at the time of this attack, these events provide a particular reminder of the exceptional bravery of our police and security services who risk their lives to keep us safe. once again today, these exceptional men and women ran towards the danger even as they encouraged others to move the other way. on behalf of the whole country, i want to pay tribute to them and to all our emergency services for the work they have been doing to reassure the public and bring security back to the streets of our capital city. that they have lost one of their own in today's attack only

makes their calmness and professionalism under pressure all the more remarkable. the location of this attack was no accident. the terrorists chose to strike at the heart of our capital city, where people of all nationalities, religions and cultures come together to celebrate the values of liberty, democracy and freedom of speech. these streets of westminster — home to the world's oldest parliament — are engrained with a spirit of freedom that echoes in some of the furthest corners of the globe. and the values our parliament represents — democracy, freedom, human rights, the rule of law — command the admiration and respect of free people everywhere. that is why it is a target for those who reject those values.

but let me make it clear today, as i have had cause to do before: any attempt to defeat those values through violence and terror is doomed to failure. tomorrow morning, parliament will meet as normal. we will come together as normal. and londoners — and others from around the world who have come here to visit this great city — will get up and go about their day as normal. they will board their trains, they will leave their hotels, they will walk these streets, they will live their lives. and we will all move forward together. never giving in to terror. and never allowing the voices of hate and evil to drive us apart. the acting deputy commissioner for the met police, mark rowley

is in charge of the investigation. late into the london evening he spoke to reporters outside new scotland yard. today we saw tragic events unfold and our thoughts are with those who lost loved ones, those injured and all those that buy this attack. one of those who died today was a police officer, pc keith palmer, a member of our parliamentary and diplomatic protection command. keith, aged a8 had 15 years service, and was a husband and father. he was someone who left for work today expecting to return home at the end of his shift and he had every right to expect that would happen. i can also now confirm that there are three members of the public who have lost their lives in the attack. specially trained family liaison officers have been deployed to support them. and as i confirmed earlier, the suspected attacker was shot dead by an armed officer. therefore now in total we have five

people who died today. i will not comment on this stage as to the identity of the attacker but our working assumption is that he was inspired by international terrorism. i should also say at this stage, that we believe approximately a0 people have been injured, including several with serious injuries, including three police officers, two of whom are in a serious condition. our investigation continues and is moving at a fast pace this evening. we will be working throughout the night. we have hundreds of officers and they are focusing on the suspects motivation, preparation and his associates. we are frantically examining a complicated crime scene that covers a wide area and as with all investigations of this nature it will take some time to work through

the painstaking work together all the painstaking work together all the evidence. only then will the full picture be known. officers are be taking statements as the attack involved and we are examining cctv. ican involved and we are examining cctv. i can also report that the lockdown in parliament has concluded and we are working to introduce the evidence cordoned off. i would like to thank the public and parliamentarians as we carried out detailed examinations and work in the area. as the prime minister said earlier on, this level of terror warning has not changed. what we will protect communities across the country. as we continue to investigate today's horrific events we wa nt investigate today's horrific events we want to assure the public that police and partners will do everything possible to protect them. asa everything possible to protect them.

as a precautionary measure we have increased the number of officers on duty, to reassure their presence. this will continue for as long as necessary. terrorists have a clear aim, that is to create discord, distrust and fear. the police stand with all communities in the uk and will take action against anybody who undermines our society especially when a crime is motivated by hate. we must recognise now that our muslim community would be feeling anxious now given far right actions of late. it is important to remain vigilant but also to work together, to unite against those who seek to threaten, intimidate and to cause fear. we ask the public to be alert and to report any suspicious activity to police, calling our

hotline or dining emergency number. todayis hotline or dining emergency number. today is a solemn and said they. everyone is affect dead. it is only right that i finish by mentioning the pride i feel in the swift and brave response from our officers, especially from those who without fearfor especially from those who without fear for their safety confronted the terrorists. the terrorism threat level in britain has been at severe for some time and security groups have been under pressure to ensure that plots targeting the uk are prevented. last month the barrister appointed to independently review the uk's terrorism legislation warned of indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians by the so—called islamic state. while we still know little about the assailant behind the attacks, the incident has highlighted just how complex the issue of stopping terrorist acts has become, as mark urban reports. there had been so many rehearsals of

scenarios like this in all sorts of environments. from the thames to the streets to the london underground and underlying all the drills, the conviction that whoever inspired today's attacker, the islamic state group had promised to strike britain. i think it was only a matter of time before an attack like this happened because is had rallied its supporters around the world by saying, attack wherever and whenever you can, and what we saw today was a very low—cost attack. it was a vehicle attacking people on the street and this is not something that, no matter how many security measures a country can take, could have been fully prevented. after the nice attacks in which an assailant

used a truck to mow people down, islamic state promised again to hit the british. in the past two years, counterterrorist chiefs say that 13 plots have been foiled in britain. today, bo, the met‘s assistant commissionerfor today, bo, the met‘s assistant commissioner for special operations had to count the cost of one that had to count the cost of one that had got through. my thoughts are with all those who have been affected by today's attack and as a service, we have lost one of our own as he tried to protect the public and his colleagues. this is a day we planned for but hoped would never happen. sadly, it is now a reality. we will continue to do all we can to protect the people of london. the metropolitan police have a tight grip on the firearms market in london and that has given them a confidence they could prevent a type of maugham by paris sort of attack with multiple gunman on the streets

but of course what they can't stop is an individual using a car and a kitchen knife. what many of these attacks do have in common, and this happened with the murder of lee rigby, is that the attackers are already well—known to security agencies. it isn't yet clear if that was the case in london today but with hundreds involved in militant islam, the problem remains of the sources and calculated risks. the uk has one of the best security services in your, if not the world, andi services in your, if not the world, and i know that the security services in the uk have foiled a number of plots that the public do not necessarily know about and as i said, the problem is, you can't fully immunise the country against someone fully immunise the country against someone driving a vehicle and attacking people that way, but the more complex plots, certainly the uk intelligence services and security services have done a very good job of protecting british citizens from

those kind of incidents. there are a great many investigative avenues and head for the police and m15 now, mapping the attacker‘s contacts, asking themselves about whether any warnings were missed that gave an indication that he had decided to mount the crimes we saw today. mark urban there with that report. support for britain has come across the globe. the president has been briefed on the situation in london. he spoke to the prime minister and we will have a read on that situation soon. we obviously condemn today's attack in westminster which the united kingdom is treating as an act of terrorism and we applaud the quick response that the british police and the first responders made to the situation, the victims in this, our ports and our prayers are with them, the city of london at her

majesty's government have the full support of the us government in responding to the attack and bringing those to justice who are responsible. sean spicer speaking therefore president trump. the french president has seen his country come under attack in recent times, he backed theresa may and the british people. we are fully aware that terrorism concerns all of us and france, which has been hit recently, understands the suffering the british people are going through today. at the same time, we must put in place every possible measure to respond to these attacks. that is what we have done for a number of months here in france and that is what i have called for at the european level. it is at that level, even beyond, that we need to get organised and measures have been taken. though organised and measures have been ta ken. though they organised and measures have been taken. though they don't need to stop —— don't mean —— they do not stop —— don't mean —— they do not stop every attack from taking place. politicians, tourists, members of

the public became witnesses which that five dead and many more injured. people describe what they saw as events unfolded. three shots, down to ten feet away from us, it was that loud. three shots, down to ten feet away from us, it was that loudlj three shots, down to ten feet away from us, it was that loud. i am going to die, that kind of feeling. just updating those figures. a0 injured, some seriously. injured include members of a school party from france, spied south korean tourists and to rumanian tourists. much more and more international

news to come. that is at the now, thank you for watching. good morning. we have an area of rain across the central and southern parts of england drifting its way further west through this morning and here we have temperatures up to six degrees. rain in southern scotland, wet and windy here in the north of scotland, the north—west in particular has light winds and clear skies and lower temperatures, reaching maybe —8 for some. the wet weather moves into the bulk of wales before eight o'clock in the morning and into parts of the south—west as well. the rain becomes light and patchy towards the south—east, something brighter behind. northern england is dry with a shower or two over high ground and fair bit of cloud in scotland and ireland. a little rain to go with that. northern scotland after a cold start stays chilly through the middle part of the morning and we get regular sunshine as well. light wind as well.

a decent start to the day. it will be a decent day for many parts of the north and east of the uk as rain is confined to the south and south—west into the afternoon with a breeze and that will temper the temperatures a little bit. 12—15 for cardiff and london. eight or nine degrees in glasgow and newcastle. through the evening again along the south coast we have thick cloud and outbreaks of rain. rain towards the northern isles but in between fine and dry with clear skies and light winds. that means it will be a chilly start once again on friday. decent rain to be had on friday with the weather front drifting away towards the south. high pressure is firmly in charge all the way to the end of the week and into the weekend. friday again a cold start for some particular southern scotland and northern england we have light winds but here will be a lovely day with plenty of sunshine in light wind. breeze top and tail of the country, a little bit of rain

in the south—west and maybe a little bit of rain towards the northern isles. a little bit higher, ten or 11 degrees for glasgow and belfast. 13 again for cardiff and london. high pressure remains in charge of our weather through this weekend. that will bring a lot of fine and dry weather, more on the way of cloud developing as we reach sunday. saturday looks a decent day across large parts of the uk, chilly start but regular sunshine through the day and it should reach 1a or 15 degrees in the south—east and 13 degrees also for belfast and edinburgh. there is always a bit of a breeze blowing across the southern half of the uk through this weekend. a bit more cloud around on sunday but many places will be fine and dry and some spells of sunshine to be had. winds lighter the further north you are. dry through the weekend, if you get sunshine it will be warm but quite chilly by night. a very warm welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to our viewers in north america and around the globe. my name's mike embley. our top stories:

britain's prime minister has condemned what she called a "sick and depraved terrorist attack." the attacker drove into pedestrians on westminster bridge, causing catastrophic injuries. it just itjust came across the road. there was a body and another body further up was a body and another body further up and when i looked over the side of the bridge there appeared to be won in the water as well. -- one. they say they know his identity, and believe he was motivated by islamic extremism. the lights of the eiffel tower in paris were switched off as a mark of respect.