POLICE have launched a manhunt after a bomb was detonated in a terrorist attack on a packed London Underground train at the height of the Friday rush hour.
Jihadi militant terror group Daesh has claimed responsibility for the attack, in which 22 people were injured.
London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, told LBC radio “there is a manhunt under way as we speak”, while Scotland Yard said detectives were making “fast-time” inquiries to establish who was responsible.
Prime Minister Theresa May condemned the “cowardly attack”, saying it involved a device “clearly intended to cause significant harm”.
Following a meeting of the Cobra emergencies committee, she said the terror threat level would remain at severe – meaning an attack is highly likely – but by evening this had been raised to critical.
Witnesses described scenes panic as the blast sent a “fireball” and “wall of flame” through the District Line service at Parsons Green station in West London shortly after 8am.
Police suspect the explosion was triggered by an improvised explosive device and have launched a huge counter-terrorism probe alongside MI5. Forensics officers are examining the device while detectives are scouring CCTV footage and examining witness statements.
Images widely circulated on social media appeared to show wires protruding from a flaming bucket inside a Lidl-branded carrier bag on the floor of a carriage.
The supermarket group offered to assist police investigating the incident after the first photos emerged. “We are shocked and concerned to have learned of an incident at Parsons Green this morning and our thoughts are with those affected,” Lidl UK said.
“We will, of course, support the authorities should they need our assistance in their investigations. We are closely monitoring the situation as it develops over the course of the day.”
Police were called at around 8.20am following reports of a fire on the train as it pulled into Parsons Green station.
Emergency services, including armed police, rushed to the scene and cordoned off the station.
Riz Lateef, a BBC correspondent who was at the station en route to work, said there was “panic as people rushed from the train”, hearing what appeared to be an explosion. “People were left with cuts and grazes from trying to flee the scene. There was lots of panic,” said Lateef.
Assistant Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley, the UK’s top counter-terrorism officer, said “many urgent inquiries” are ongoing, adding: “We now assess this was a detonation of an improvised explosive device.”
Asked if it was clear whether the person responsible was on the train at the time, Rowley said: “It’s very much a live investigation and we are following down the lines of inquiry.” He added that Londoners could expect to see an “enhanced police presence”.
The blast came with the UK on high alert following four terrorist attacks this year. Authorities have foiled 19 plots since the middle of 2013, including six since the Westminster atrocity in March.
It also came a day after figures revealed terror-related arrests in Britain have hit a record high, with suspects held at a rate of more than one a day. Police and MI5 run 500 investigations involving 3,000 individuals at any one time, while there are also 20,000 former “subjects of interest” whose risk must remain under review.
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, which had declared a major incident at St Mary’s Hospital to deal with the attack, later tweeted: “St Mary’s Hospital has now been stood down from the major incident.”
Scotland Yard declined to comment after US President Donald Trump tweeted: “Another attack in London by a loser terrorist. These are sick and demented people who were in the sights of Scotland Yard. Must be proactive!”
Home Secretary Amber Rudd said: “Once more people going about their everyday lives have been targeted in a callous and indiscriminate way.”
London Ambulance said it had taken 19 patients, mostly with minor injuries, to St Mary’s, St Thomas’ and the Chelsea and Westminster hospital.
Scotland Yard said the area surrounding Parsons Green Tube station had been evacuated so specialist officers could “secure the remnants of the improvised device and ensure it is stable”.
Scotland’s Justice Secretary Michael Matheson said: “My thoughts and best wishes are with all of those people caught up in the incident in the London Underground, as well as the emergency services who are working to keep people safe.’’
Matheson added that while investigations are at a very early stage, the Scottish Government was keeping informed of events, including through close liaison with both Police Scotland and the Westminster Government.
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