The Latest: Putin: UK attack shows need for joint efforts
By Associated Press
Mar 23, 2017 3:41 AM CDT
Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, left, stands amongst the emergency services at the scene outside the Palace of Westminster, London, Wednesday, March 22, 2017. London police say they are treating a gun and knife incident at Britain's Parliament "as a terrorist incident until we know otherwise." The...   (Associated Press)

LONDON (AP) — The latest on the attack outside Britain's Parliament (all times local):

8:40 a.m.

Russian President Vladimir Putin says the attack outside Parliament in London underlined the need for pooling global efforts against terrorism.

In a letter to British Prime Minister Theresa May released by the Kremlin Thursday, Putin said the "forces of terror are acting in an increasingly treacherous and cynical way."

He emphasized that "it's necessary to unite efforts of all members of international community to confront the terror threat."

Putin offered condolences to the families of the victims and wished a quick recovery to those injured in Wednesday's attack.

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7:50 a.m.

British police say they believe the attacker who killed three people including a police officer outside Parliament acted alone and was 'inspired by international terrorism.'

Metropolitan Police counterterrorism chief Mark Rowley says that police have raided six addresses and arrested seven people in connection with Wednesday's attack by a knife-wielding man who also mowed down pedestrians with an SUV. Rowley refused to identify the attacker.

He revised the death toll down to four, including the attacker, a police officer guarding Parliament and two civilians. He said that 29 people required hospitalization and seven of them are in critical condition.

--This item has been corrected to show that death toll, including attacker, has been revised to four.

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7:25 a.m.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned the attack outside Britain's Parliament in London.

The rampage occurred hours after Erdogan warned that the safety of Western citizens could be in peril if European nations persist in what he described as their arrogant conduct.

In a series of tweets posted late Wednesday, Erdogan said Turkey shared "the pain of the United Kingdom."

Erdogan tweeted: "We stand in solidarity with the U.K., our friend and ally, against terrorism, the greatest threat to global peace and security."

Earlier Wednesday, Erdogan warned that Europeans wouldn't be able to walk the streets safely, in remarks he made amid tensions over Dutch and German restrictions on Turkish ministers wanting to hold campaign meetings with Turkish citizens.

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7:15 a.m.

British armed police have carried out a raid on a property in the central city of Birmingham, after an attacker killed four people before being fatally shot by police within Parliament's grounds.

Police refused to say if the raid was linked to the rampage in the heart of Britain's seat of power. But British media including the Press Association on Thursday quoted an unnamed witness saying that the operation was linked to the attack that also injured around 40 people.

A knife-wielding man drove an SUV into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge before crashing the vehicle into the gates of Parliament on Wednesday. He scaled the fences and later fatally stabbed a policeman before being gunned down by officers. He hasn't been identified. Three pedestrians were among the dead.

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4:10 a.m.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang says the attack outside the British Parliament in London was the first subject of discussion when he met with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull of Australia on Thursday morning in Canberra.

Li says that "together, we send our condolences to the prime minister of the U.K. and together we condemn terrorism and we stand against all forms of terrorism."

The Chinese leader says that "there cannot be continued instability in the world," adding: "We must cherish peace and stability."

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1:35 a.m.

New Zealand's prime minister is condemning the attack outside Britain's Parliament that resulted in five deaths, including the assailant.

Prime Minister Bill English told reporters in Rotorua that he has written to British Prime Minister Theresa May to express support for her government and to offer his country's condolences to the victim's families.

A knife-wielding man went on the deadly rampage in the heart of Britain's seat of power Wednesday, plowing a car into pedestrians on London's Westminster Bridge before stabbing a police officer to death inside the gates of Parliament. Other officers fatally shot the attacker.

In addition to the dead, 40 people have injuries.

May has condemned the incident as a "sick and depraved terrorist attack."

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12:15 a.m.

South Korea's Foreign Ministry says five South Koreans in their 50s and 60s were among the 40 people injured in London during the terror attack outside Parliament.

The ministry says the five were hurt when they were caught up in a stampede of people trying to escape the attack.

It says four of the South Koreans suffered broken bones and other injuries and a woman in her late 60s needed an operation to treat a head injury.

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