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Police activity outside Parsons Green station in west London yesterday. PA Wire/PA Images

18-year-old man arrested in connection with London Underground bombing

An 18-year-old man has been arrested.

Updated at 7pm

BRITISH POLICE RAIDED raided a home near London today just hours after making their first arrest in the investigation into the bombing of an Underground train a day earlier.

An 18-year-old man was detained at the port city of Dover, one of the country’s main links to Europe, with officers describing the development as a significant step in their investigation.

They later announced that the raid was under way.

“Police officers have evacuated and are searching a residential address in Sunbury, Surrey,” a statement said.

Thirty people were treated in hospital after the bomb was detonated in a packed train carriage yesterday morning, in what was Britain’s fifth terror attack in six months.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said that police had made “very good progress” in their enquiries, while appearing to dispute claims by US President Donald Trump that a “loser terrorist” behind the attack was known to Scotland Yard.

“It’s much too early to say that,” Rudd said in a televised interview. “At the moment we have one arrest and we have an ongoing operation.”

Trump’s claims, made yesterday on Twitter, had already garnered a terse rebuke from Prime Minister Theresa May, who said: “I never think it’s helpful for anybody to speculate on what is an ongoing investigation.”

The improvised explosive device in a train at Parsons Green station, a quiet and wealthy residential district, failed to detonate fully, according to media reports.

But the blast inflicted flash burns on passengers, and prompted dozens of others to flee in panic.

Police in Dover said the teenager arrested would be transferred to custody in London.

“This arrest will lead to more activity from our officers,” said a statement, outlining that the man was being held under anti-terror legislation.

Deputy assistant commissioner of the London Met Police Neil Basu – senior national coordinator for counter terrorism policing – described the arrest as “significant”.

“We have made a significant arrest in our investigation this morning,” he said.

Although we are pleased with the progress made, this investigation continues and the threat level remains at critical.

Basu warned the public to “remain vigilant” and said that police were not changing the protective security measures put in place in the wake of the attack.

“This arrest will lead to more activity from our officers. For strong investigative reasons we will not give any more details on the man we arrested at this stage,” Basu said.

Detectives investigating the attack said that they had spoken to 45 witnesses and continue to receive information from the public to the confidential anti-terrorist hotline.

The UK was last on critical alert after the bombing at a concert in Manchester in May, which was also claimed by the IS group.

In a statement yesterday, the group said an IS “detachment” had carried out the London attack.

Rowley earlier said most of the injuries were due to “flash burns”, while others were wounded as passengers ran out of the station in panic.

Witness Charlie Craven told AFP he heard a “massive bang”, adding:

I saw an orange sort of fireball encompassing the whole Tube coming towards you.

Another, Lauren Hubbard, described it as “a wall of fire”.

Twitter user @Rrigs posted pictures of a white bucket smouldering on the train and described how a “fireball flew down carriage and we just jumped out open door”.

The bucket, which was inside a frozen food bag from the budget supermarket chain Lidl, looked like the type used by builders and there appeared to be cables coming out of it.

Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney expressed his sympathy with the people of London and said that he was not aware of any Irish citizens being injured in the incident.

‘Unhelpful speculation’

US President Donald Trump said that “loser terrorists” were behind the attack, adding that they were already “in the sights” of British police.

London’s Metropolitan Police dismissed the tweet as “unhelpful speculation”, while May also rebuked him.

May said the device was “clearly intended to cause significant harm”, condemning it as a “cowardly attack”.

Speaking yesterday evening, Rowley said the remnants of the bomb were being examined by forensic scientists.

British media reported that it had a timer but failed to detonate fully.

© – AFP 2017 With reporting from Cormac Fitzgerald 

Read: UK terror threat level raised to ‘critical’ following London tube explosion

Read: ‘There is so much anger and so much deep upset’: Public inquiry opens into Grenfell Tower blaze > 

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    Mute Ferg Breen
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:00 AM

    We Need To Talk About Dylan.

    76
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    Mute reg gordon
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    Sep 26th 2014, 7:50 AM

    Can’t agree with this
    So the killer becomes even more notorious?
    These killings should be consigned to the past as they happen to prevent copy cat events

    36
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    Mute tmwtbc
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:14 AM

    There have been countless books written about countless murders and massacres; by victims, investigating officers and even perpetrators themselves. This is no different.

    83
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    Mute Cathal Golden
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:16 AM

    So I suppose all massacres and maybe even genocide should also be consigned to the past? How very irish of you!

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    Mute Ablitive
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:18 AM

    Copy cat false flags is the correct terminology.

    A search for the “victims” of the 1999 Columbine ‘massacre’ in official records yields some shocking results …there aren’t any

    http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1ab_1399244702

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    Mute Jake Race
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    Sep 26th 2014, 12:57 PM

    Maybe Bob Geldof will write a song about it too.

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    Mute Chris Mackey
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:37 AM

    As a parent with a son in college that is one of the things that I worry about but are we just a generation away from it happening here where we have parents being killed or seriously injured while we drop our children to school. You can buy a gun easier in the states than a car, We are going the same way here. What the solution is I don’t know, we can make it more difficult to but weapons/drugs/ etc but if you stand outside any school & ask the students where you can get these things I will bet my wages that within a few min you will have what you want or be given the name of someone who can get it for you.

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    Mute Chris Mackey
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    Sep 26th 2014, 9:08 AM

    I should say he is in college in the states but click red if you wish but it is going to happen here all we have to do is look at the amount of bullying in schools from playgroup/playgrounds/ parks/internet/ right up into the work place. We are to a nation that pretends this will never happen to me. It can happen, we are a generation away from this happening even if you dont agree with me. All you have to do is read papers, listen to the news its out there we need to wake up & smell the coffee. Click red all you like but it is just a generation away

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    Mute Jake Race
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    Sep 26th 2014, 12:59 PM

    ” You can buy a gun easier in the states than a car, We are going the same way here.”

    In what respect are we “going the same way here”?

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    Mute Chris Mackey
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    Sep 26th 2014, 6:18 PM

    You can buy a gun in walmark or on any street the same as here I bet you could go into a pub anywhere in Ireland get drugs, guns etc & if you think this is not true then ask any teenager they will know where to go or know someone who knows someone where to get it

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    Mute Justin O'Connell
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:59 AM

    Who is worse here, the mother for writing the book or the public that will buy it..??
    “Paper will never refuse ink”

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    Mute Matt Connolly
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    Sep 26th 2014, 6:26 PM

    …& the journal will never refuse nutjobs.

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    Mute Juan Venegas
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    Sep 26th 2014, 10:27 AM

    People always trying to Ka$hing at any cost

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    Mute Loop De Loop
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    Sep 26th 2014, 10:44 AM

    Eh … She’s giving the profits away ????

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    Mute Jake Race
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    Sep 26th 2014, 12:57 PM

    A parenting manual no doubt.

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    Mute Rowan T Cregan
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    Sep 27th 2014, 9:06 AM

    The reference work on that day is the book, “Columbine” by Dave Cullen. He goes through the initial reports of that day and demonstrates that every word released by the local police chief was untrue.

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    Mute Andrew Dunne
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:11 AM

    Actually this book could not recent future shootings.

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    Mute Andrew Dunne
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    Sep 26th 2014, 8:11 AM

    *prevent

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