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Two children were killed and nine were injured in a knife attack in the UK. The murderer was a 17-year-old boy

2024-07-30

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[Text/Observer.com Fang Jiyi] According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), on July 29 local time, a knife attack occurred in Southport, Merseyside, England, killing two children and injuring nine children, six of whom were seriously injured. Two adults were also seriously injured.

After the incident, a 17-year-old male suspect was arrested. Police said the motive for the attack was "unclear" but not related to terrorism.

King Charles III and Prime Minister Starmer expressed their "heartfelt condolences" to the victims.

It is reported that at 11:47 am local time on the 29th, Merseyside Police received a call saying that a knife attack occurred at a dance school on Hart Street in Southport.

It is reported that the dance school is for children aged 6 to 10 years old.

Serena Kennedy, the local police chief, said at a press conference that the police who received the call were "shocked" to find that many people, many of whom were children, had been "brutally attacked" and seriously injured. "It is understood that these children were participating in an event themed on American singer Taylor Swift at a dance school. The assailant walked into the school with a knife and began to attack the children."

Reports showed that the knife attack killed two children and injured nine children, six of whom were seriously injured. Two adults were also seriously injured.

Kennedy said police believe the two adults were injured while trying to protect the children who were being attacked.

She said the 17-year-old suspect was born in Cardiff, England, and would be questioned by police.

Merseyside Police said the motive for the attack was "unclear", but according to Kennedy, the incident was not currently believed to be terrorism-related.

Kennedy also expressed his "heartfelt condolences and sympathies" to the victims' families.

The owner of a car repair shop next to the attack told the BBC it was like "a scene from a horror movie" and "this doesn't seem like something happening in the sunny town of Southport, it seems like something happening in America."

A reporter from local media said: "It was terrible, I have never seen anything like it. There were a lot of police cars and blue lights everywhere. People in the ambulance were in tears, and people on the street were in tears too."

King Charles III of England said in a statement that he and his wife were "deeply shocked" to hear of the "very terrible incident."

He said his heartfelt condolences, prayers and deepest sympathies went to the families of those killed and all those affected by the "shocking" attack.

Prince William and Princess Charlotte posted on social media that the attack was "horrific and outrageous" and "as parents, we cannot imagine what the families, relatives and friends of the victims and injured in Southport today have experienced." They expressed their love, thoughts and prayers to "all those involved."

At the same time, they expressed their gratitude to the emergency responders.

British Prime Minister Starmer said the whole country was shocked by this incident, "I say on behalf of everyone in the country that our thoughts and condolences are with the victims, their families, friends and others."

According to the ABC, the worst attack on children in the UK took place in 1996 when 43-year-old Thomas Hamilton shot and killed 16 kindergarten students and their teacher in the gymnasium of a school in Dunblane. Subsequently, the UK banned private ownership of almost all types of handguns.

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