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Suspect in UK Parliament Ramming Charged With Attempted Murder - Reports

© Sputnik / Alex McNaughton / Go to the mediabankPolice officers cordon off the territory near the UK Parliament in London where an assailant attacked a police officer and pedestrians.
Police officers cordon off the territory near the UK Parliament in London where an assailant attacked a police officer and pedestrians. - Sputnik International
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British investigators reportedly suggested earlier that there was nothing to suspect that Salih Khater, 29, the Sudanese man who rammed a car into the Houses of Parliament in London on Tuesday had been radicalized.

Sources familiar with the matter told The Independent earlier that the UK investigators were coming to the view that the ramming incident was related to the man’s personal circumstances.

According to London's Metropolitan Police, Khater will appear at the Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday and be charged with attempted murders of members of the public and of police officers.

READ MORE: UK Schools on Lockdown Over Ramming Threats — Local Police

On Tuesday, a Ford Fiesta collided with several cyclists and pedestrians before crashing at high speed into a security fence outside the Houses of Parliament. Three people were injured in the incident. The driver, Sudanese-born Salih Khater, was detained shortly after the incident, which UK investigators have classified as a terrorist attack.

"A 29-year-old man has been charged with two counts of attempted murder today (Saturday, 18 August) following an incident in Westminster on Tuesday, 14 August … Salih Khater (26.1.89) of Highgate Street, Birmingham, a Sudanese born UK national, will appear in custody at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 20 August," the statement read.

An armed police officer mans a cordon on the Seven Sisters Road at Finsbury Park where a vehicle struck pedestrians in London Monday, June 19, 2017. Police say a vehicle struck pedestrians on a road in north London, leaving several casualties and one person has been arrested. - Sputnik International
UK Authorities Classify Deadly London Ramming Incident as Terror Attack
UK police have also reportedly taken into consideration testimony by Khater's friends and neighbors who said he had showed no interest in extremist ideology or fanatical ideas, but instead appeared to be under stress.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick, in the wake of the recent car-ramming incident said Wednesday that the UK authorities would discuss pedestrianizing the square in front of the parliament building in London.

Over the past few years, the terror threat in the United Kingdom has remained high against the backdrop of numerous deadly terrorist acts, such as the attacks on London Bridge, Manchester Arena, Finsbury Park Mosque, and Westminster Bridge, where a British national drove his car into pedestrians before smashing into the fence surrounding the Houses of Parliament.

According to Europol, 36 people died in terror acts in the United Kingdom last year, which was more than in any other European country.

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