THE first picture has emerged of the man suspected of killing three people in a terror attack in Reading - as it's revealed he was already on MI5's radar.
Khairi Saadallah, 25, originally from Libya, is accused of carrying out a random knife attack in Forbury Gardens in the town's centre shortly after 7pm on Saturday.
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Three people died following the attack and a further three were hospitalised with serious injuries, though two have since been discharged.
One of the victims has been named as James Furlong, head of history at the Holt Community School in Wokingham.
The suspect was detained and arrested at the scene, and Thames Valley Police have this morning said the incident is being investigated as an act of terror.
No further details of a possible motive have been released, but mental health is being considered as a major factor, a source told the PA.
Saadallah arrived in the UK in 2012 as a tourist before claiming asylum on the grounds that his life was being threatened by Islamists in Libya, the Mail reported.
He has at least one previous conviction for a "minor violent offence", Sky News reported, and he is thought to have spent at least 12 months in jail.
He was being supervised by the National Probation Service, the Guardian reported, and court reports suggest a number of additional convictions for a man of the same name, age, and address.
None of the suspect’s previous convictions are believed to be terror-related, but security sources have told the BBC he was known to MI5.
In August last year, a man of the same name, age, and address appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court after allegedly assaulting a judge at Reading Magistrates' Court while being sentenced for two previous convictions, the Press and Journal reported.
In April last year, a man of the same name and age was imprisoned for two months for a common assault on an emergency worker and fined £115 for possession of a blade, the Reading Chronicle reported.
Saadallah is also thought to have been previously charged with affray, assault by beating, and possessing an offensive weapon following an altercation with a Sainsbury’s security guard who had accused him of shoplifting.
'CAN'T BELIEVE HE'D DO THIS', SAYS COUSIN
Speaking to the Mail, Saadallah's cousin, who lives in Libya, said he converted to Christianity around three years ago.
"He started going to church and had tattoos all over his body including one of a cross on his arm," they said.
"I cannot believe this. I can’t believe he’d do anything like this or be involved in anything to do with terrorism."
A neighbour of Saadallah's, who gave his named only as Adam, told the Sun that Saadallah had been "in and out of prison".
“A few months ago he threw his TV off the balcony and started smashing up his flat," he said.
"Police were called and he was recalled to prison. He only got out about three weeks ago."
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A foreign national given a jail term of 12 months or more for a violent offence would typically face automatic deportation, but at present the UK would not deport a person to Libya because of the country's ongoing civil war.
Yesterday's attack will raise questions about whether Saadallah should have been more closely monitored following his release.
Fellow neighbour Mohamed Seliman, 29, said he'd last seen Saadallah on Friday but that he "didn't seem himself".
"He was just sitting on the stairs with his head against the handrail," he said.
"He was sitting there when I left and when I came back three hours later he was still there.
"He looked deep in thought.”
A former acquaintance has also claimed he used to buy cannabis from Saadallah after initially being approached by him in an alleyway.
Speaking to the Sun, Kieran Vernon, 26, said: “I used to meet him four times a week to buy cannabis from him down an alley near his flat.
"Honestly he seemed like a normal guy.
“I only met him a few weeks ago so we haven’t chatted that much, but told me how he’d been in prison that he was originally from Libya.
“He loved whisky too.”
NIGHT RAID
Footage showed a suspect being pinned to the floor and arrested following yesterday's attacks.
Describing the attacks, Lawrence Wort, 20, a personal trainer from Chippenham, said: "A lot of people sat around drinking with friends when one lone person walked through.
"Suddenly shouted some unintelligible words and went around a large group of around 10, trying to stab them.
"He stabbed three of them, severely in the neck, and under the arms, and then turned and started running towards me, and we turned and started running.
"When he realised that he couldn't catch us, he tried to stab another group sat down.
"He got one person in the back of the neck and then when he realised everyone was starting to run, he ran out the park."
Police later carried out a raid on an apartment in a block on Basingstoke Road, less than a mile from the scene.
Around 20 armed police and counter-terrorism officers were reportedly seen outside carrying automatic rifles and a disc cutter.
More than a dozen neighbours were evacuated during the raid, and witnesses reported hearing a controlled explosion shortly after 1am.
Police have confirmed they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the attack.
The prime minister has this morning held a meeting on the incident with police, security officials, and ministers.
The case follows that of Hashem Abedi, who was last year extradited to Britain from Libya to face justice for his role in the Manchester Arena Bombing, carried out by his brother, Salman Abedi, in 2017.
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Hashem was subsequently convicted on 22 counts of murder, though his sentencing, originally scheduled for April, has been postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The last terror attack on British soil was in Streatham, South London in February, when Sudesh Amman, 20, was killed by police after stabbing two people on the high street.
On November 4, the UK's terror threat level was downgraded from "severe" to "substantial" - its lowest level since 2014.
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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMibGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZXN1bi5jby51ay9uZXdzLzExOTE2MDk0L3JlYWRpbmctdGVycm9yLXN1c3BlY3Qta2hhaXJpLXNhYWRhbGxhaC1wcmlzb24tdmlvbGVuY2UtbGlieWEta2lsbGVyL9IBcGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZXN1bi5jby51ay9uZXdzLzExOTE2MDk0L3JlYWRpbmctdGVycm9yLXN1c3BlY3Qta2hhaXJpLXNhYWRhbGxhaC1wcmlzb24tdmlvbGVuY2UtbGlieWEta2lsbGVyL2FtcC8?oc=5
2020-06-21 16:43:13Z
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