‘You people will never be safe’

Britain was in a heightened state of alert last night following a suspected terrorist attack in which a young man was hacked to death in broad daylight on the streets of London.

Last night hundreds of police were combing the streets of Woolwich in south-east London where two men were reported to have butchered their victim with a meat cleaver before posing for photographs.

To add to the tension, members of the English Defence League (EDL), a far-right movement opposed to the spread of Islam, clashed with riot police after throwing bottles as they gathered at Woolwich Arsenal train station to sing nationalist songs. There had been earlier unconfirmed reports that the two men behind the attack had been heard chanting “Allahu Akbar” an Islamic phrase meaning “God is great”.

EDL gathering at pub in woolwich. Riot police on site pic.twitter.com/Z47n8ut14B

— Rose Hughes (@RoseHughesNews) May 22, 2013

However, the Muslim Council of Britain was quick to react, condemning the attack as “a truly barbaric act that has no basis in Islam”. Warning that the action would “no doubt heighten tensions on the streets of the UK”, the council called on all communities, Muslim and non-Muslim, to come together in solidarity.

Amateur video footage of the attack shows one of the assailants, a black man with bloodied hands carrying a knife and a meat cleaver, approaching onlookers to calmly explain the reason for the attack, even offering an apology.

The man, probably in his 20s, then crosses over the street to his fellow assailant. The images show no sense of urgency and several women are seen in the background trying to tend to the victim. There were reports that his attackers beheaded him after first knocking him down, then dragging him onto the street, before launching a frenzied knife attack.

One onlooker, identified as James, said he saw two black men chopping at a man in his 20s like he was “a piece of meat”. There were reports last night that the victim was a soldier from a nearby barracks. He was wearing a T-shirt for the Home for Heroes charity.

The two assailants remained at the scene after the attack, reportedly urging onlookers to call the police. When the police did arrive about seven minutes later, the assailants ran towards the police vehicle, one of them armed with a gun. An onlooker said a female police officer jumped out and shot them both. They were being treated for injuries in hospital last night. One man is understood to be in a serious condition.

British prime minister David Cameron, who cut short a trip to Paris, described the attack as “truly shocking”, adding that Britain “will never buckle” in the face of terrorist attacks.

Footage last night showed a frenzied scene in Woolwich. Some images show three men lying scattered in the street, surrounded by discarded weapons and splashes of blood. Witnesses huddled behind a police cordon as around 30 to 40 officers secured the scene, just yards from a school.

Met Police Commander Simon Letchford confirmed the two attackers were shot by armed officers. The Independent Police Complaints Commission has started an investigation into the circumstances. This is a matter of routine when officers use their firearms.

During the 2011 England riots Woolwich was one of the areas affected. Several buildings were attacked, with a few destroyed.

Killer filmed

One of the men behind a barbaric terror attack on the streets of London was filmed wielding a bloodied meat cleaver and saying: “We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you.”

The black man, dressed in a grey hooded jacket and black woolly hat, apologises to members of the public who witnessed the horrific scenes before making a number of political statements.

In the footage he is heard to say: “We must fight them as they fight us. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.

“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.”