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A security guard jumped on a knifeman and successfully disarmed him during chaotic scenes in London’s Leicester Square, with an 11-year-old girl and 34-year-old woman stabbed in the tourist hotspot.
Along with the assistance of other members of the public, Abdullah, 29, managed to hold the man until the arrival of emergency services. A 32-year-old man was arrested at the scene.
Both victims were taken to major trauma centres, with the young girl requiring hospital treatment for her injuries, which are not life-threatening, and the woman suffering more minor wounds.
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Speaking to reporters, Abdullah, who worked at the nearby TWG Tea shop, said: “I heard a scream, at that moment I saw there was one person... and he was like stabbing a kid – I jumped on him, held the hand in which he was (carrying) a knife, and just put him down on the floor and just held him and took the knife away from him.
“Then a couple of more people joined as well, and we just held him until the police came, it took maybe three to four minutes for the police to arrive.”
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He and his colleagues gave first aid to the child before the police joined in, he said. “I just saw a kid getting stabbed and I just tried to save her. It’s my duty to just save them.”
He added that he did not know if the girl was with family members at the time.
A street performer who witnessed the attack said the knifeman focused the attack on the girl, putting her in a headlock and stabbing her.
Desmond, 45, who performs as Darth Vader on the square “every day”, told reporters: “When I looked to my side I saw a man… was stabbing her several (times) with a knife.
“Before I could jump down to go (over there), two guys were just passing, and they grab him [sic], they put him on the ground, and immediately the police came. I think the woman was also stabbed once, but the child was the most targeted, he was stabbing the child several times.”
He added: “It was so terrible, I’ve never seen a thing like that. I was heartbroken, I saw the woman was screaming with all her strength.”
A police cordon was put in place surrounding the double doors of the TWG Tea shop and beside the LEGO and the M&M store, with families and tourists still standing in queues for each.
Police said the incident is not being treated as terror-related.
A number of objects including bloodied napkins could be seen on the ground, as well as a black cap and pieces of paper.
Detective Chief Superintendent Christina Jessah, in charge of policing for Westminster, said: “This is a horrific incident and our thoughts are with the victims and their family. We will continue to provide support to them over the coming days and weeks.
“I would like to pay tribute to the members of the public, including staff from local businesses, who bravely intervened in this incident. They put themselves at risk and showed the best of London in doing so.
“An urgent investigation is now ongoing and detectives are working to establish the details around exactly what happened.
“At this stage we don’t believe the suspect and the victims were known to each other.
A London Ambulance spokesperson added that they had been called to the scene at 11:36am after receiving reports of a stabbing.
They said: “We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an advanced paramedic and an incident response officer. We also dispatched members of our tactical response unit.
“We treated a child and an adult at the scene and took them to a major trauma centre.”
Leicester Square and its surrounding areas in Soho and the West End are regarded as one of London’s most popular tourist hotspots, with an estimated 2.5 million visitors every week.
Near Piccadilly Circus, it is home to a number of restaurants, theatres and cinemas, and is usually crowded with street performers and visitors.
