Thread: BBC Man dead in suspected Woolwich UK terror attack (Actual statements)

22 May 2013 Last updated at 14:45 ET

Man dead in suspected Woolwich terror attack

A man has been killed in a machete attack and two suspects shot by police in Woolwich, south-east London.

Prime Minister David Cameron said there were "strong indications that it is a terrorist incident" and the UK would "never buckle" in the face of such attacks.

Footage has emerged showing a man wielding a bloodied meat cleaver and making political statements.

There are unconfirmed reports that the dead man was a soldier.

Both French President Francois Hollande and MP Nick Raynsford said the dead man had been a soldier at Woolwich barracks.

The footage shown on the ITV website shows a man, dressed in a grey hooded jacket, saying: "We must fight them as they fight us. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth."

He added: "I apologise that women have had to witness this today, but in our land our women have to see the same. You people will never be safe. Remove your government, they don't care about you."

Home Secretary Theresa May has summoned a meeting of the government's emergency response committee Cobra.

It is too soon to know exactly what happened.

But what makes this completely different to any other violent attack is the fact that the prime minister asked the home secretary to convene a meeting of Whitehall's emergency response committee.

Those meetings are not convened lightly.

The fact is that all available accounts point towards this being a terrorist incident carried out by someone inspired by al-Qaeda's jihadist ideology.

If that's the case it would be the first such incident leading to a death of someone other than the perpetrator since the London suicide bombings of 2005.

So the first task for ministers will be to consider what implications the situation has for the public and national security.

The official terrorism threat level is currently "substantial" - the third highest level - which means that an attack is "a strong possibility".

If officials raise the level to "severe", that would mean they fear that another attack is highly likely.

Read more from Dominic

Mrs May said she had been briefed by the director general of Security Service MI5, Andrew Parker, and Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe on the "sickening and barbaric" attack.

"It has been confirmed to me that a man has been brutally murdered," she said. "Two other men were shot by armed police and they are currently receiving treatment for their injuries."

Speaking in Paris, Prime Minister David Cameron said there were "strong indications that this is a terrorist incident".

He said Britain had faced terror attacks such as the one in Woolwich before, before adding: "We will never buckle in the face of it."

Downing Street said Mr Cameron, who had been planning to stay in Paris overnight after meeting the French president, would be returning to the UK tonight.

One witness, identified only as James, said two men had attacked another man, aged about 20, who was wearing a T-shirt of military charity Help for Heroes.

"These two guys were crazed. They were just animals. They dragged him from the pavement and dumped his body in the middle of the road and left his body there," he told LBC radio.

He said after the "horrendous" attack, the two men, who were also in their 20s, stood around, waving knives and a gun, and asked people to take pictures of them "as if they wanted to be on TV or something".

"They were oblivious to anything, they were more worried about having their photo taken, running up and down the road," he said.

Scene of incident in Woolwich The incident took place before many eyewitnesses
Thomas, a witness who contacted the BBC, said: "I got there minutes after it happened because you could hear gunshots from Woolwich High Street.

"Basically two men carried out an axe attack on a young army cadet walking along the street, by the looks of things the police responded and then shot them in front of the public, at the same time I couldn't really tell if the cadet was fatally or not hurt as police were crowded around him."

Whitehall sources have told the BBC it is "a fair supposition" that the incident was a terrorist incident but police have not commented publicly on the suggestion.

BBC political editor Nick Robinson said the police view is that the attack may have been filmed and footage may exist.

According to senior Whitehall sources the people carrying out the attack were heard to say Allahu Akbar [God is Great], said our political editor.

On Twitter, the Mayor of London Boris Johnson described the attack as a "sickening deluded and unforgivable act of violence".

Buckingham Palace say the Queen is concerned at the news of the attack in Woolwich and is being kept informed.

School lock-down

Mr Raynsford, the Woolwich and Greenwich MP, said he had spoken to local police and understood a number of weapons had been seized at the scene including a gun, knives, and a machete.

Scotland Yard said the initial attack happened in John Wilson Street, the A205, at 14:20 BST.

Metropolitan Police Commander Simon Letchford said the two attackers were then shot by armed officers.

He said: "Police were called to reports of an assault... where one man was being assaulted by two other men. A number of weapons were reportedly being used in the attack, and this included reports of a firearm.

AdvertisementHead teacher David Dixon describes seeing a body in the street and hearing gunshots

"Officers including local Greenwich officers arrived at the scene, and shortly after firearms officers arrived on the scene.

"On their arrival at the scene they found a man, who was later pronounced dead....

"Two men, who we believe from early reports to have been carrying weapons, were shot by police. They have both been taken to separate London hospitals. They are receiving treatment for their injuries.

"I can understand that this incident will cause community concerns and I would like to reiterate that we are investigating the circumstances."

Meanwhile, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) confirmed it had been informed.

London Ambulance Service said two men had been taken to hospital - one by air ambulance - and one of them was a serious condition.

David Dixon, a local head teacher, told the BBC News Channel he walked out of the school gates and saw a body lying in the road a short distance away.

He then heard gunshots and instructed staff to lock all the gates of his school.

The air ambulance landed in the playground and most of the children have now gone home, he said.

Map of scene
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-22630303

Brutal cleaver assault on man in London street is suspected terror attack

By Laura Smith-Spark, CNN
updated 3:11 PM EDT, Wed May 22, 2013

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Security is increased around Woolwich, military barracks in London, source says
British government says it is treating the incident as a suspected terror attack
Footage shows a man holding a cleaver and swearing "by Allah" to keep fighting
A local lawmaker says he believes the man killed is a serving soldier

Are you there? Send us your photos, videos

London (CNN) -- A man thought to be a serving British soldier was killed by two armed men in a frenzied attack on a London street Wednesday, in what the government is treating as a suspected act of terrorism.

Witnesses told of a gruesome scene in which the man was hit by a car, then hacked with cleavers and his body dumped in the middle of the road in Woolwich, southeast London.

The two suspects in the killing were injured in a confrontation with police and have been taken to two hospitals, where they are being treated.

CNN affiliate ITN aired a video showing a man with bloody hands and holding a meat cleaver, who says, "We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you."

The man, who is black and appears to have a London accent, carries on: "The only reasons we killed this man this is because Muslims are dying daily. This British soldier is an eye for an eye a tooth for tooth.

"We apologize that women had to see this today but in our lands our women have to see the same. You people will never be safe. Remove your government. They don't care about you."

The victim is believed to be a serving soldier who was based at a nearby barracks, Nick Raynsford, a member of Parliament, told CNN.

The soldier had apparently been on duty in central London and was returning to the Royal Artillery Barracks in Woolwich when he was attacked, Raynsford said.

Speaking in Paris, Prime Minister David Cameron said there were "strong indications" that the man's killing was a terrorist incident.

He said he would be returning early from the official trip to handle the situation and will be back in London Wednesday night.

"It is the most appalling crime," he said, speaking alongside French President Francois Hollande, who pledged solidarity with Britain in the face of terrorist threats.

Cameron declined to confirm whether the man killed was a serving soldier, while Britain's defense ministry said it was investigating to see whether that's the case. But the prime minister vowed the United Kingdom would stand firm in the face of threats to its security and "will not buckle."

UK Home Secretary Theresa May led a meeting of the country's civil emergency committee, known as COBRA, on Wednesday evening, and Cameron will chair another such meeting on Thursday.

Afterward, authorities increased security around Woolwich and all military barracks in London, a British government source said.

British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond said the killing was a "very shocking incident" and that the UK takes the safety of its troops "very seriously," as he headed into the COBRA meeting.

London Mayor Boris Johnson tweeted: "This afternoon's attack in Woolwich is a sickening deluded and unforgivable act of violence. My thoughts are with the victim and his family."

That sentiment was echoed by many others -- such as May, the Home Secretary, who described it as a "a sickening and barbaric attack," and Labour Party leader Ed Millband, who predicted the "whole country will be horrified" by what he called the "appalling events."

Commander Simon Letchworth told reporters in Woolwich that local officers had responded when an assault was reported at 2:20 p.m. Wednesday and a firearms unit was called to the scene. British police do not usually carry firearms.

"Two men, who we believe from early reports to have been carrying weapons, were shot by police," he said. "They have both been taken to separate London hospitals and are receiving treatment for their injuries."

'They were hacking at this poor guy'

Eyewitnesses have given gruesome details of the killing.

One, Michael Atlee told CNN he and friends heard gunshots and when they turned the corner saw a pool of blood on the sidewalk and a trail of blood leading into the road.

The man killed appeared to be wearing a T-shirt for Help for Heroes, a charity that helps military veterans, he said.

Another witness, who gave his name only as James, told London's LBC 97.3 radio station that he saw two men standing by the victim on the floor.

At first he thought they were trying to help the man but then saw two meat cleavers, like a butcher would have.

"They were hacking at this poor guy, literally," he told the radio station, as if they were trying to remove his organs.

"These two guys were crazed. They were just not there. They were just animals."

The men appeared to want to be filmed, he said, saying that one of the attackers went over to a bus and asked people to take photos of him as if he wanted to be on TV.

He said the two men had rushed at the police when they arrived, at which point shots were fired and both men went down.

Lauren Collins told CNN: "I still am quite shaken at what I've seen -- I've seen a victim of an awful attack, and I've seen a body of a young man."

Another witness, Woolwich Theatre owner Adrian Green, said the incident was "shocking" but did not reflect the true nature of the area.

Raynsford said the military based at the centuries-old barracks had a close relationship with the local community. Woolwich is a mixed, multicultural area, he added.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/22/world/...ack/index.html

CNN Soldier killed in London yesterday was Lee Rigby, 25, a father and drummer in Britain’s army, officials say.

Slain soldier was a drummer


Britain vows to hunt all involved


The soldier brutally slain on a London street was a ceremonial drummer and also served as a machine gunner in Afghanistan. He leaves a 2-year-old son. Two suspects are in custody, but were others involved? FULL STORY

• Latest developments on the attack
• Suspect caught on video | Photos

Updated May 23, 2013, 3:45 p.m. ET.

Police Arrest Two New Suspects in U.K. Killing .

By CASSELL BRYAN-LOW, PETER EVANS and JEANNE WHALEN

LONDON—British police made two additional arrests on Thursday in the gruesome killing of a soldier outside an army barracks, as an official said the two suspects shot and detained a day earlier were already known to security services.

The arrests of two new suspects on suspicion of conspiracy to murder—a man and a woman, both 29 years old—came as counterterror investigators probed deeper into Wednesday's brutal attack, which British officials said was likely terror-related. They weren't named, and were in custody at a south London police station.

The arrests are in connection with Wednesday's killing of a man now identified as Lee Rigby, 25, a member of member of the second battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers who served in Afghanistan.

Witnesses said two men hacked at the victim with large knives in broad daylight. Videos from witnesses quickly surfaced of a man with bloodied hands, apparently in the immediate aftermath of the incident, holding a large knife and a cleaver, and making antigovernment statements.

Police also said they had executed search warrants at six residential addresses in the U.K.: three in south London, one in east London, one in north London, and one in Lincoln, in northern England.

A statement from London police late Thursday described the investigation as "large, complex and fast-moving." Police also said they were "gathering information from witnesses, social media and a painstaking trawl of CCTV footage in the area."

The two men police believe to be behind the attack had surfaced in security service probes into Islamic extremists in recent years, the official said. Such investigations result in thousands of individuals facing varying levels of scrutiny.

Still, the development could lead to the kind of questions U.S. officials have faced in the Boston Marathon bombing, in which one suspect was previously known to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In both cases, the attacks left authorities scrambling to figure out whether the individuals were acting on their own or as part of a larger network.

In the London killing, British authorities are investigating Islamic extremist links as well as potential links to Nigeria, a person familiar with the matter said.

At least one of the suspects is believed to be of Nigerian decent, a man in his late 20s named Michael Adebolajo, according to people familiar with the matter. But as of Thursday, the British government hadn't appeared to have broadened their investigation into Nigeria, according to a British defense official, on the belief that Mr. Adebolajo had little connection to that country and its continuing war against a fundamentalist insurgency group Boko Haram.

While the Nigerian population in the U.K. has grown significantly in recent years, Christianity is far more common than Islam among the community.

Police, who haven't identified the four suspects, declined to comment on their identity. Mr. Adebolajo couldn't be reached for comment.

The brazen attack on the soldier shocked Londoners and revived debate over how to confront terrorism in Britain, which suffered dozens of deaths in a series of coordinated suicide bombs on July 7, 2005. That incident prompted a huge revamp of the country's antiterror efforts, resulting in the thwarting of numerous major plots in the years since.

In the attack, police said they responded to reports of a man being assaulted in Woolwich, southeast London, by two other men wielding a number of weapons including firearms. Two men believed to be the attackers were shot by police after they arrived at the scene.

The men were arrested and taken to the hospital for treatment of injuries, where they remained Thursday under armed guard. Neither has been charged.

Abu Nusaybah, a 28-year-old in London who describes himself as Muslim in his Twitter profile, said in a brief message that he has known Mr. Adebolajo since 2002, when they met in the county of Essex. "I am surprised—but makes sense now, he was always hurt if he heard of Muslims being harmed" anywhere in the world, Mr. Nusaybah wrote.

He said Mr. Adebolajo was interested in foreign policy and believes that Western governments have "set up puppet regimes" in some countries that "oppressed the people." He said Mr. Adebolajo has worked as a fitness instructor in the past.

Anjem Choudary, a former leader of banned radical Islamic group al-Muhajiroun, said in an interview he knew Mr. Adebolajo by his nickname "Mudjahid"—or "person doing the Holy War" in Arabic. He said he believed Mr. Adebolajo converted to Islam in 2003.

"Brother Mudjahid was just an ordinary Muslim…He was attending demonstrations, processions, lectures" of al-Muhajiroun, said Mr. Choudary, adding that Mr. Adebolajo wasn't a member of the group. "There was no difference between him and others, thousands of Muslims who came across us. We lost contact with him completely about two or three years ago."

"What took place yesterday was a shock to everyone who knew him," Mr. Choudary added.

The Muslim Council of Britain strongly condemned Wednesday's attack, calling it a "barbaric act that has no basis in Islam."

A U.K. address database lists two different addresses for a Michael Adebolajo at two separate student residence halls at the University of Greenwich, dating back to 2004 and 2005. A spokeswoman for the University of Greenwich declined to say Thursday whether Mr. Adebolajo is or was a student there, saying the university was "taking our guidance from police" and couldn't comment further.

Police raided an address in Greenwich in the early hours of Thursday morning, according to neighbors. One neighbor said three women and a "teenage boy" were arrested. Another neighbor, Nicola James, 42, said one of the "attackers from the TV" had often visited the apartment, identifying him as having a beard. Police still at the scene Thursday afternoon declined to comment.

Police did confirm that they had conducted searches at another address Thursday, in Lincolnshire, in the northeast of England about 150 miles from London, in connection with the Woolwich killing.

Police are investigating the gruesome killing of a man outside a military training facility in London. UK Prime Minister David Cameron called the attack “appalling” and said it appears to be a terrorist incident.

Jane Slingsby, an employee at a small business in Lincolnshire located near an address listed as an Adebolajo residence, said police had cordoned off a nearby home and were searching it Thursday. She described the residents of the house as a black family who are "very private."

Plots Against Britain
Some of the incidents since 56 people were killed on July 7, 2005, on London's public transport system, in the '7/7' attacks:

August 2006 Police foil an alleged plan to use liquid explosives to blow up flights between the U.S. and the U.K.
2006 A London street vendor is sentenced to six years in prison for plotting to kill a decorated U.K. soldier.
January 2007 Authorities arrest eight suspects who allegedly plotted to behead a U.K. Muslim soldier while broadcasting the killing on the Internet.
July 2007 Police arrest four suspects after a flaming jeep crashes into a Scottish airport. The incident follows a foiled carbomb plot in central London.
2010 Roshonara Choudhry tells police she stabbed a former treasury minister in the stomach because he voted for Iraq war
2011 Several suspects are arrested in connection with an alleged plot to detonate knapsack bombs. In April 2013 the ringleader and two accomplices are sentenced to 10 to 18 years in jail.
.
"It's a family you never see," she said. "The curtains are always shut at the house…they keep themselves to themselves." Ms. Slingsby said she had never seen the man identified on television as the Woolwich attacker at the property being searched.

Police said a major investigation was under way, led by the counterterrorism unit at London's Metropolitan Police.

Mark Rowley, an assistant commission at the Met, addressed questions about the amount of time it took police to respond to the incident Wednesday, saying that officials received a call about the attack at 2:20 p.m. local time and subsequent calls described the attackers as being in possession of a gun.

Police had officers at the scene within nine minutes of that first call and firearm officers arrived within 14 minutes, Mr. Rowley said. He added that police had met with community leaders and there was increased police presence in Woolwich and the surrounding areas. Some 1,200 extra officers were on duty across London with extra patrols at key locations such as religious venues, transport hubs and busy areas.

Mr. Cameron, who has described the incident as a "sickening attack" and curtailed a trip to Paris to return to the U.K., held an hourlong meeting of top security and government officials, known as Cobra, on Thursday morning. Police and intelligence agencies updated him on the continuing inquiry and the defense ministry briefed him on security.

The group also discussed issues of community cohesion and recognized "the strength and unity of response from Muslim community leaders," a spokesman for the prime minister said.

"The people who did this were trying to divide us. They should know something like this will only bring us together and make us stronger," Mr. Cameron said.

"We will never give in to terror or terrorism in any of its forms. This view is shared by every community in our country," said Mr. Cameron. "This was not just an attack on Britain and the British way of life, but it was also a betrayal of Islam and of the Muslim communities that give so much to our country. There is nothing in Islam that justifies this truly dreadful act."

"We have lost a brave soldier," the prime minister added.

In Woolwich, forensic police teams worked all night as a tent still covered the blood-spattered street where the killing took place. Flowers had been laid at the edge of the police cordon.

Early Thursday morning, several police vans carrying eight or more officers pulled up at the scene as neighbors peered through their windows.

One local, Wendy Okoye, said she was asleep on Wednesday when the attack happened, but woke to the sound of sirens. "I was terrified when I found out what happened. We've had murders here before, but nothing like this," said Ms. Okoye, a 48-year-old mother.

A local primary school opened, despite fears voiced by some parents. "We are focused on having as normal a day as possible," said Andrew Stern, a spokesman for the local council. "It's been very traumatic for staff and pupils."

Woolwich is dominated by the military base, which houses some 700 servicemen. Residents say the military personnel keep to themselves, occasionally visiting local bars at the weekend."We've lived together as a community for decades," said one local. Security has been stepped up at the barracks in Woolwich and across London. The Ministry of Defence "takes the security of its personnel very seriously," a spokesman said.

—Benoît Faucon and Nicholas Winning contributed to this article.
Corrections & Amplifications
British Prime Minister David Cameron highlighted media reports that the two suspects were known to the security services, but declined to elaborate. An earlier version of this article said that Mr. Cameron said the two suspects were known to security services.

Write to Cassell Bryan-Low at cassell.bryan-low@wsj.com, Peter Evans at peter.evans@wsj.com and Jeanne Whalen at jeanne.whalen@wsj.com

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...WhatsNewsThird

London killers are Britons of Nigerian origin

Times of India 25 minutes ago

Written by Kounteya Sinha

LONDON: Britain experienced a communal backlash against Muslims within 24 hours of a young, serving soldier being butchered with "stone age savagery" in Woolwich by two radical British Nigerians who had changed from being "devout Christians to ...

Woolwich suspect radicalised by hate preacher as MI5 admit both attackers were known to them - Second man named as Michael Oluwatobi Adebowale
- Adebolajo raised as Christian but obsessed with Islam as a schoolboy
- Claims that he was radicalised by now banned group Al Muhajiroun
- Parents moved him from Romford after fears over his behaviour


Radicalised: Anjem Choudary (front) at a rally in Paddington in 2007. Michael Adebolajo can be seen behind (left)

23 May 2013

Astonishing footage has emerged of one of the Woolwich suspects, Michael Adebolajo, with Islamic hate preacher Anjem Choudary during a 2007 demonstration in London.

Choudary, former leader of the banned Al Muhajiroun group, is pictured speaking through a megaphone with Adebolajo in white cap and robes behind him.
It has also been suggested that Adebolajo had ties with hate preacher Omar Bakri, who was banned from Britain and is now based in Lebanon.
The second suspect in the attack, in which Drummer Lee Rigby was hacked to death, was named last night as Michael Oluwatobi Adebowale of Greenwich, south east London.
Former classmates of Michael Adebolajo, a British citizen of Nigerian descent, told the Standard how he started becoming interested in Islam aged 15 or 16 having been raised as a Christian.
They said his Nigerian parents became so worried about his behaviour that they moved him from their home in Romford to London in a bid to protect him from being radicalised.
Yesterday anti-terror police raided addresses in London, Lincolnshire and in Romford and took away members of his family for questioning.
Both suspected killers of the British soldier who was hacked to death in the street in Woolwich yesterday were revealed today as known to MI5 but are thought to have acted alone.
But detectives are investigating claims that Adebolajo may have been radicalised after attending meetings of the now banned group Al Muhajiroun.
Adebolajo, believed to be 28, was filmed after the atrocity wielding a bloodied meat cleaver, saying: "We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you."

In the chilling footage, with hands covered in blood, he explains his terrifying actions, saying : "We must fight them as they fight us. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth,"
He is said to have formally converted to Islam in 2003 when he started using the name Mujahid.
He attended Marshalls Park school in Romford and was described as a "nice, normal guy" by friends, who expressed "utter shock" at seeing him on television covered in blood brandishing a meat cleaver and machete, declaring "you and your kids will be next".
A friend, who asked not to be identified, said: "He was a Christian. A nice, normal guy. All his friends were white and used to go round to each other's houses all the time.
"He started getting involved with Islam aged about 15 or 16, and that is why his parents moved him away out of the area. It is utterly shocking to see what he has done. It's unbelievable."
Adebolajo began attending meetings of the banned Islamist organisation Al Muhajiroun and its successor organisations but stopped going two years ago.
Anjem Choudary, the former leader of the group, said: "I knew him as Mujahid. He attended our meetings and my lectures. I wouldn't describe him as a member [of Al Muhajiroun]. There were lots of people who came to our activities who weren't necessarily members.
"He was a pleasant, quiet guy. He converted to Islam in about 2003. He was just a completely normal guy. He was interested in Islam, in memorising the Koran. He disappeared about two years ago. I don't know what influences he has been under since then."
His alleged accomplice in the attacks is believed to have come from nearby Harold Hill.
Anti-terror police were today preparing to question the two men who are under armed guard in two London hospitals. Neither is said to have life threatening injuries after being shot by armed officers who arrived at the scene.

• Woolwich analysis: African links are probed amid fears of more ‘lone wolves’
• Woolwich killing: Keep wearing your military uniform, David Cameron tells London troops
• 'Better me than a child' - one of the heroines of Woolwich explains why she risked her life to confront bloodied knifeman

Officers were searching several addresses in London, Romford and Lincolnshire which are connected with the men.
A woman, said to be Michael's sister, was taken away by police from an address in Romford while officers raided a house in Lincolnshire believed to belong to his father, nurse Anthony Adebolajo, 56.
In another raid in Greenwich neighbours told the BBC that four people - two sisters in their 30s, an older woman and a teenage boy, were all taken away in a police van.
Boris Johnson today visited the scene with Kit Malthouse to meet police and members of the community.
He thanked the police for their work and emergency services and called on Londoners to "go about their business in the normal way".
The Mayor said: "I want to thank them [the police] and all the excellent work they've done in the past 24hours and I also want to thank the rest of the London emergency services. They've done an excellent job. Plainly this was a horrific incident."
He added: "I have absolutely no doubt Londoners will go about their business in the normal way."
The Prime Minister pledged to be “absolutely resolute” and urged Britons to carry on with their everyday lives.
In a statement outside No 10, David Cameron said: “This country will be absolutely resolute in its stand against violent extremism and terror.
“We will never give in to terror or to terrorism in any of its forms.”
The Prime Minister said every community in the land was united in condemnation of the murder. He praised the brave women who tended the body of the dead soldier and stood up to his killers.
But he said there was no reason for people to change their lives. “I’m not in favour of kneejerk responses,” he said. “One of the best ways of defeating terrorism is going about our everyday lives and that is what we shall do.”
Assistant Commissioner Simon Byrne urged Londoners to remain calm after around 50 supporters from the English Defence League threw bottles at police near the scene of the Woolwich murder last night.
He said : "The investigation into the shocking murder of a serving soldier yesterday is ongoing, and is of course a major investigation for us.
"It is only right that the ongoing investigations are allowed to take place and I would ask for Londoners help and support for us to continue. Please remain calm. London is at its best when we all come together and now is the time to do that"
He also denied reports that it took armed officers 20 minutes to reach the scene of the attack in John Wilson Street, Woolwich yesterday.
Police said the first 999 call to reports of a man being attacked in Woolwich was logged at 2.20pm. Four minutes later firearms officers were ordered to the scene following reports that the men were armed with knives and a gun.
Police said the first armed officers deployed to confront the two men 10 minutes later at 2.34pm.
Scotland Yard formally confirmed today that the victim was a serving soldier but said they were not releasing his name at the request of his family.
Security chiefs, police and politicians, including London mayor Boris Johnson, met to discuss their response to the "barbaric" attack at a meeting of the Government's Cobra crisis committee this morning.
Leaving the meeting of Cobra, which lasted around one hour, Mr Johnson appeared to indicate that yesterday's attack was being seen as a one-off incident.
He said: "Everything I am hearing leads me to think that Londoners can go about their business in the normal way and we are going to bring the killers to justice."
Earlier Mr Johnson also praised the bravery of the people of Woolwich in standing up to the two killers.

Witnesses said the two men first used a car to run over the soldier who was wearing a Help for Heroes T-shirt.
Then they dragged him to the side of the road and using a meat cleaver and knives hacked at him "like a piece of meat" and tried to behead him.
The men then dumped his body in the middle of the road and calmly talked to bystanders while they appeared to wait for police to arrive.
Meanwhile, a woman who risked her life to confront one of the killers who murdered the soldier in broad daylight in front of horrified passers by described how she tried to calm him moments after the barbaric attack.
Cub leader Ingrid Loyau-Kennett, 48, was on a bus heading through Woolwich when she spotted the stricken soldier lying bloodied in the road.
Her bravery - and that of others who tried to reason with the killers - has been praised, particularly in the wake of amateur footage from the scene, which shows one of the killers making political statements about the slaughter while still brandishing weapons.
She told ITV Daybreak : "He said 'Don't touch, I killed him'. I said 'Why?' He said 'He's a British soldier. He killed people. He killed Muslim people in Muslim countries'.
"And I said, OK. So what would you like? I tried to make him talk about how he felt. He said all the bombs dropping and blindly killing women, children
The victim, thought to be aged 20, had reportedly been on duty at an Army recruitment office in central London was on his way back to the Royal Artillery Barracks when he was attacked.
The dark blue Vauxhall Tigra used in the attack in John Wilson Street was covered with a red tarpaulin and taken away by a tow truck last night.
Security was tightened around all military bases across the UK today.
In London extra armed patrols were deployed around barracks but sources denied reports that military personnel had been told not to wear uniforms off base.
In a statement, the Greenwich Islamic Centre said: "The Muslims of the Greenwich Islamic Centre in the Royal Borough of Greenwich today condemn in the strongest terms the barbaric murder of a serving Army officer and share the grief and sorrow of the nation. Our hearts go out to the family, colleagues and friends of the victim of this despicable and horrific tragedy.
"We are all very deeply shocked and saddened to have witnessed a terrible crime in our neighbourhood.
"We do not and will never support such evil acts, and strongly suggest that both of these men should be severely punished as criminal and not as so-called 'Muslims' for the crime they have committed, with full force of law."
Serving soldier Zak Dempster, 36, laid flowers at the barracks. The soldier, who serves in a regiment in Kent was wearing a Help for Heroes t shirt like the victim.
The Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers soldier said: "I am paying my respects this man has a family. This is so sad. I was brought up around here even though I now serve in Kent.
"It is terrible for the community. We are told to be careful when wearing uniform in public what with all the tensions. It should not be like that."
Police appealed to anyone who filmed or took photos in John Wilson Street to send them to police via woolwich@metincident.co.uk or ring the confidential Anti-Terrorist Hotline 0800 789 321.
　
　
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/woolwich-suspect-radicalised-by-hate-preacher-as-mi5-admit-both-attackers-were-known-to-them-8627618.html