The beheading of a soldier in London’s Woolwich neighborhood has shocked the country, and led many to speculate that the attack was an act of terrorism. The brutal and bloody murder was captured by a cameraman, and footage of the beheading was given to a British broadcaster, which ran the footage. Two suspects are currently in custody and being treated at a hospital after being shot by London police.
The attack, which occurred yesterday afternoon on a street in Woolwich, was witnessed by several bystanders. The two suspects drove a car onto the sidewalk, hitting the victim, exited the car and then used butcher knives to hack away at his body. A third person filmed the occurrence with a video camera, though it is unknown if the camera-holder is connected with the two suspects.
After the victim was dead, one of the suspects, believed to be London resident Michael Adebolajo, raised his bloodied knife into the air and shouted political statements about the British government into the camera. After apologizing to the women at the scene of the crime for the fact that they saw the crime occur, he then said, “The only reason we have killed this man today is because Muslims are dying daily by British soldiers. And this British soldier is one. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. We swear by almighty Allah that we will never stop fighting you.”
“You people will never be safe. Remove your governments, they don’t care about you. You think [British Prime Minister] David Cameron is going to get caught in the street when we start busting our guns? You think politicians are going to die? No, it’s going to be the average guy, like you and your children. So get rid of them. Tell them to bring our troops back so we can all live in peace.”
According to the Mirror, the victim is believed to be an off-duty soldier who was returning to the barracks.
After the attack, Adebolajo and the other attacker, who were armed with at least one revolver, were gunned down by police officers. They are currently being treated at a London hospital, where one of the two suspects is in critical condition.
Cameron, who was visiting Paris at the time of the attacks, spoke about the attacks, saying “Tonight, our thoughts should be with the victim, with their family, with their friends. People across Britain, people in every community, I believe, will utterly condemn this attack. We have had these sorts of attacks in our country and we never buckle in the face of them.” Cameron also asked Home Secretary Theresa May to chair an emergency meeting to investigate the attacks and the possibility that Adebolajo was a member of a terrorist cell planning further attacks.
Image and Video Credit: ITV News