A TERROR suspect thought to have been arrested with a bag of knives in Whitehall was part of a Gaza aid convoy that ran into difficulties as it attempted to enter into the strip seven years ago, it is believed.
Details about British national Khalid Mohamed Omar Ali, 27, emerged as he continued to be questioned by detectives following his dramatic arrest close to the Houses of Parliament on Thursday.
It came as, separately, an active terror plot was foiled after police launched an armed raid in Willesden, north London, which left a woman injured in a police shooting.
It is thought Mr Ali was reported to police after a family member became suspicious about his activities.
Born abroad, he attended school in Tottenham, north London, and as a younger man was actively involved in supporting the cause of Palestine.
This is believed to have led him to take part in an aid convoy in 2010 that ran into difficulties attempting to cross through the Egyptian border.
Former MP George Galloway led an aid mission under the Viva Palestina banner at that time, but it is not known if Mr Ali was involved in this.
Mr Ali was detained by armed officers after a stop and search in a pre-planned swoop as he walked through an area that was on high alert following Khalid Masood’s ramming of pedestrians, leaving four dead, and stabbing to death of Pc Keith Palmer last month in Westminster.
Mr Ali was arrested on suspicion of offences under the Terrorism Act and possession of offensive weapons.
Two searches are being carried out at addresses in London.
Meanwhile, six people were in custody after a team of specialist firearms officers stormed an address in Willesden, north London, on Thursday night.
A woman in her 20s who was shot during the swoop remains under police guard after being taken to hospital in a serious but stable condition.
Elite armed officers raided a terraced property in Harlesden Road shortly before 7pm on Thursday night.
Police fired CS gas into the address, which had been under observation as part of a current counter-terrorism operation.
Neighbours recalled hearing “at least six” shots and screaming as police entered the address.
Neighbour Ruth Haile said she heard shots and saw an injured woman being treated.
Ms Haile said: “She shouted ‘Don’t touch me, my body, don’t touch my dress’.” Next door neighbour Alexandra Sabanov, a mother-of-one said she saw officers with “gas masks and snipers”.
She added: “We heard ‘bang, bang, bang, bang’, went to the window and just saw a number of armed police just there with their guns pointing at our next-door neighbour’s window.”
Ms Sabanov said the Muslim woman was “screaming really loud” and they had previously “never suspected anything at all”.
Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu said: “I believe that we have contained the threats that they posed.”
Mr Basu said an armed entry was necessary in Willesden “due to the nature of the intelligence that we were dealing with”.
He said: “During the course of that operation, one of the subjects of that operation - a woman - was shot by police; she remains in hospital.
“Her condition is serious but stable. Because of her condition she has not yet been arrested.
“We are monitoring her condition closely.”
The Independent Police Complaints Commission has been informed of the incident, as is routine procedure for police shootings.
A total of six people were arrested in connection with the raid, including five at or near the address in north London and one in Kent. Home Secretary Amber Rudd said: “I would like to reinforce my gratitude to the police and security services, who work tirelessly around the clock to keep the people of this country safe.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here