New Delhi: A British lawmaker David Amess, is reportedly stabbed to death in an Essex church on Friday by an assailant in a terrorist attack. The 69 year old British Conservative MP Sir David Amess, from Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative Party, was stabbed repeatedly in the attack at around noon in the Belfairs Methodist Church in Leigh-on-Sea, east of London, according to news agency Reuters.
The Metropolitan Police, whose counter-terrorism unit are leading the investigation of the incident, declared the deadly attack as a terrorist incident, as per the agency.
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The initial investigation has revealed a "potential motivation linked to Islamist extremism," according to the police . As per the report, a 25-year-old man was held at the scene on suspicion of murder. The investigation is led by specialist counter-terrorism officers. "As part of the investigation, officers are currently carrying out searches at two addresses in the London area and these are ongoing," the police informed assuming that the suspect in custody acted alone.
Meanwhile, politicians described the incident as an assault on democracy. "David was a man who believed passionately in this country and in its future and we have lost today a fine public servant and a much loved friend and colleague," said Johnson, who rushed back to London from the west of England after the news broke.
This is the second fatal attack on a British lawmaker in their constituency in the last five years raising concerns about the safety of politicians. Amess had served as an MP for 38 years, since 1983. He initially represented Basildon, before moving to Southend West in 1997, according to a BBC report.
Born in Plaistow in east London in 1952, Amess was raised as a Roman Catholic, and was known as a social conservative. The married man with five children had prominently campaigned against abortion, the BBC report said.