Raids, arrests continue after London Bridge attack

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) - Raids and searches in London have continued following a weekend terror attack in the British capital which killed seven people and injured 48 others, police said on Monday.

“Officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command investigating the London Bridge terror attack entered two further addresses -- one in Newham and another in Barking,” police confirmed.

Police also said a number of people had been detained, but did not give further details. The detainees’ names would be released as soon as “operationally possible,” police added.

Meanwhile, the first name from among the seven fatalities from Saturday’s attack in central London was released on Monday.

Canadian woman Christine Archibald died on London Bridge after being struck by a van reportedly driven by the terrorists on Saturday night. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was “heartbroken” by the death.

Twenty-one of the injured are still in a critical condition, according to health officials.

Police said at least four officers were hurt during Saturday’s attack. Three assailants were shot dead at Borough Market after they ran over pedestrians on London Bridge before going on a stabbing spree.

A large police cordon is still in place around Borough Market and London Bridge. London Bridge station -- a major transport hub -- has since been reopened.

Meanwhile, a website associated with the terrorist group Daesh claimed responsibility for the third major terror attack in the U.K. in the last three months.

- ‘Enough is enough’

Police on Sunday said they had arrested 12 individuals in connection with the latest attack. One was later released, leaving seven men and four women in custody.

Prime Minister Theresa May, speaking on Sunday following a high-level security meeting, said “enough is enough,” signaling changes in dealing with extremism in the U.K.

She said there would be “difficult and almost embarrassing conversations”.

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid responded to May’s statement in a newspaper article on Monday. Writing in The Times and identifying himself as a Muslim, Javid said “searching questions” need to be asked.

“There’s no avoiding the fact that these people [attackers] think they are Muslims. They identify as Muslims. And they carry out their attacks -- ignorantly, offensively -- in the name of Islam.

“That’s why, although we all share the responsibility for tackling terrorism, there’s a special, unique burden on the Muslim community…” he wrote.

Harun Rashid, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, earlier echoed the prime minister saying: “We are ready to have those difficult conversations, as equal citizens with an equal stake in this fight.”

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan invited Londoners and visitors to a vigil to commemorate the victims near City Hall on Monday.

U.K. political parties resumed their general election campaigns on Monday after a day-long suspension after the attack.

May said the general election will go ahead on Thursday, as planned.