Buckingham Palace ‘sword man’ charged with planning terror act
Indictment comes days after Mohiussunnath Choudhury shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ and reached for his blade when approached by officers
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LONDON — British authorities on Thursday charged a man with terrorism offenses following an incident near Buckingham Palace last week in which a suspect with a four-foot sword injured three police officers.
London’s Metropolitan police charged Mohiussunnath Choudhury, 26, from Luton in north London with engaging in the preparation to commit an act or acts of terrorism on August 25. He will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates’ Court later Thursday.
Police said three officers were slightly injured as they struggled to arrest a man who deliberately drove up to a police van in a restricted area on Constitution Hill, a road near the palace. The officers confronted the man, who reached for the sword in his car and repeatedly shouted “Allahu akbar” (“God is greatest” in Arabic) during the incident, police said. The officers used tear gas to incapacitate the man and arrested him at the scene.
No one other than the suspect and the officers were injured.
Buckingham Palace is the London home of Queen Elizabeth II and one of the city’s main tourist attractions.
Police said they believe the suspect was acting alone. A second man was detained on Sunday for questioning, but police said he faced no further action.
British media reported that no royal family members were in the palace at the time of the attack.
The Times of Israel Community.