A Pakistani-origin man was among three knife-wielding militants responsible for carrying out the brutal London terror attack that killed seven people and injured 49, according to a media report.
The man, identified as 'Abz' or "Abbs" is believed to have been the ringleader of the trio that carried out the horror attack at two London landmarks, The Mirror reported.
Abz, 27, is said to be from Barking in east London, was pictured lying on the ground after police swooped on the attackers on Saturday night and shot them dead in a flurry of 50 bullets.
It has emerged one of the #LondonAttack terrorists was featured in a @Channel4 documentary ABOUT JIHADISM! What on earth are we playing at?! pic.twitter.com/GfEwDvfxLM
— LEAVE.EU 🇬🇧 (@LeaveEUOfficial) June 5, 2017
Seven people were killed and 49 injured when the trio rammed a van into pedestrians on London Bridge before stabbing revellers in bars in the nearby Borough Market.
Abz, a father of two children, appeared to pray to an Islamic State flag in a London park in a TV documentary about the behaviour and motivations of British extremists.
Police are searching four houses in Barking and have made 12 arrests as part of their investigation into the atrocity.
His neighbours said the Arsenal fan had been wearing the club's replica away shirt the day before the attack, matching the one worn by one of the suspects pictured lying on the ground with what appear to be canisters taped around his body.
I just wanted to save us' - hero Romanian baker Florin ran after the attackers & threw crates at them #LondonAttack pic.twitter.com/L2arIdVGNr
— Catrin Nye (@CatrinNye) June 5, 2017
The terrorist was a home-grown jihadi who came from Pakistan as a child but was brought up in the UK, the report said.
He was twice reported to anti-terror authorities, the report quoted sources as saying.
A neighbour said he immediately noticed the Arsenal away shirt Abz was wearing after being shot dead by police outside the Wheatsheaf pub on Saturday night.
Evacuated from #LondonBridge after dinner in the #Londonattack pic.twitter.com/AEP8LDGFDx
— Janey Peterson (@drjaneypeterson) June 4, 2017
He said: "I looked on Twitter and saw one of the terrorists who had been shot by police and he looked 90 per cent like my neighbour - he was even wearing the same Arsenal shirt that I had seen him in at 5 pm that evening". Abz is the only one of the attackers identified so far.
He lived in a block of flats with his wife and two young children that were raided by police early on Sunday.
Ken Chigbo, 26, who lives in the same building, described him as "really sociable" and said Abz had invited him to a barbecue just last week.
Time to try something else?#LondonAttack pic.twitter.com/wZyjPckwdj
— John Cole (@JCEastleigh) June 5, 2017
The latest terror attack, just four days before the general election on June 8, comes less than two weeks after a suicide bomber, Salman Abedi, targeted a Manchester concert on May 22, killing 22 people.
On March 22, six people died, including the attacker, and at least 50 people were injured in an attack near the Houses of Parliament.
Attacker Khalid Masood first drove his car at pedestrians on the pavement on Westminster Bridge before crashing into a perimeter fence. Masood, armed with a knife, then left the vehicle and ran towards Parliament, where he was shot dead by police.
LONDONERS OPEN THEIR DOORS TO TERROR ATTACK VICTIMS
Several Londoners and businesses opened their doors to people stranded here after the London Bridge attack by sharing offers on social media with the hashtag #SofaForLondon, days after Manchester residents helped out in a similar manner in the wake of the concert bombing.
#London mayor @SadiqKhan criticises PM May over police spending cuts:
— Georg Matthes (@GeorgMatthes) June 5, 2017
"We have lost 600 Million £ and thousands of staff!" #londonattack pic.twitter.com/8C6P5B4t8r
Residents offered shelter and comfort to those affected by the terror attack on the capital by sharing the hashtag #SofaForLondon on social media.
Taxi drivers provided free rides from the cordons around London Bridge and Borough Market that left many cut off.
Places of worship across many faiths, including gurdwaras, joined hotels and businesses in providing food and shelter.
Mayor of London @SadiqKhan responds to #LondonAttack, saying "there can not be justification for the acts of these terrorists" #LondonBridge pic.twitter.com/qG6fYFAO1H
— Sky News (@SkyNews) June 4, 2017
Strangers reached out on social media offering a cuppa, chat or a spare bed for the night, BBC reported.
All this came just days after Manchester residents opened up their homes and offered help to concert-goers affected by the horrific terror attack at the Manchester Arena last month.
They used the hashtag #RoomForManchester to offer help to distraught people after their night of music ended in tragedy with a suicide bomber blowing himself up at the arena, killing at least 22 people and injuring 59 others.
pic.twitter.com/Dx2EdcC7Vv
— Ziggy Ostrowski (@ZiggyOstrowski) June 3, 2017
Happy hour? #LondonBridge #londonattack
Londoners immediately reached out to help after yesterday’s horrific attack in which three knife-wielding attackers unleashed a terror rampage here, ploughing a van into pedestrians on the iconic London Bridge before stabbing revellers in a nearby market, killing seven people.
George Moss, 22, was taken in by friends Holly Robinson and Mary Lynch, who had tweeted that strangers with nowhere else to stay could go to their home in Vauxhall.
Moss, who had lost his mobile phone, was unable to get home after police put a cordon between Borough Market and Elephant and Castle.
He borrowed a phone from a journalist to let his parents know he was safe and spotted #SofaForLondon on Twitter. “After that I went towards Vauxhall and found Holly and Mary who very kindly gave me a place to stay,” he was quoted as saying.
Staff at the Royal Oak pub in Tabard Street, Southwark said they gave shelter to around 150 people following the attacks. “There were people standing in the street who were evacuated from hotels nearby or who couldn’t get back so we invited them in,” said barman Radek Malis.
Neil Coyle, Labour candidate for Bermondsey and Old Southwark, was just minutes away from the scene of the attack and said the response from Londoners was “amazing”.
Anthony Myers tweeted a heart-warming offer to “anyone caught up in” the terror attacks: “Tea, salt and vinegar crisps and comfy cushions. All the essentials. #sofaforLondon #LondonBridge”.
