British authorities have stated that the explosion outside a women's hospital in Liverpool that killed one person was a terrorist attack. The man who died is said to be the attacker.
The attack occurred on Sunday when a taxi exploded and was then engulfed in flames outside the Liverpool Women's Hospital. Reports indicate that the taxi driver ran from the car and locked the passenger in the vehicle seconds before the explosion occurred. The driver received minor injuries.
The explosion occurred just minutes before 11 AM on the 11th day of the 11th hour, a moment when Britain marks the lives lost in conflicts.
It is speculated that the explosion may have misfired and that a much larger detonation was expected, or that the explosive was a small incendiary device.
A friend of the taxi driver, David Parry, told reporters:
"David noticed the man had some kind of light attached to his clothing and was messing around with it, it didn't look right at all. They couldn't get there, the roads were blocked off. The man changed his mind and asked to go to the city centre instead. But when they were going past the Women's Hospital he said to pull in there. It was just before 11."
"I don't know how he's done it with a split second's thought, but David's jumped out and locked the car with this guy in the back. As soon as he did, it's gone off. If this guy got in the hospital, God knows what could have happened. David's the luckiest man in Britain as well as the most heroic."
It is thought the attacker may have been trying to go to the remembrance service being held at Liverpool Cathedral, where members of the armed-forces and veterans would be gathered.
In response to the attack, the UK authorities have risen the terror threat level in the UK to the second highest level.
After the explosion, three men across the city were taken into custody by anti-terror police. All are thought to have direct links to the passenger who as of yet has not been named.
At a press briefing, British police said:
"Although the motivation for this incident is yet to be understood, given all the circumstances, it has been declared a terrorist incident."
While no group has been named, Islamic extremists and those linked to ISIS must be seen as prime suspects. Just last month, a British member of Parliament was stabbed to death by an Islamic extremist, the second MP to be murdered in the last 7 years.
[Based on reporting by: The Daily Mail]
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