Two young British men, aged 32 and 35, caused one of the most serious incidents in recent times in the country on Saturday night, stabbing passengers on a train heading to London and injuring ten people, two of whom are still in life-threatening condition. After several hours of uncertainty, British police have ruled out an ideological motive: 'Nothing suggests this is a terrorist incident,' said Chief Superintendent John Loveless of the Transport Police at a press conference from Huntingdon station (northern England), where the events took place. The detail that the perpetrators are two British men — 'both born in the United Kingdom,' Loveless emphasized — is very important in a country where anti-immigrant rhetoric is growing, linked to similar security incidents: last Monday, an Afghan refugee stabbed a man walking a dog in a west London area, killing him. Nevertheless, questions remain about the motivations for the attack, as the fact that there were two attackers and they targeted so many people suggests it was not a 'lone wolf' or a disturbed individual, but rather involved some degree of coordination. Despite being in custody for over twelve hours, the two detainees — a 32-year-old Black man and a 35-year-old man of Caribbean descent, whose identities have not been revealed — have not yet clarified the motives that led them to commit one of the most serious attacks in the country in recent years. Therefore, the police leader urged citizens to call two phone numbers to provide details, 'however small they may seem,' that could help clarify the facts. No one understands what could have driven these two men to attack, apparently at random, so many people on a train that was packed with passengers on a Saturday night and traveling on the line between Doncaster and King's Cross station in north London. Witnesses have described horrific scenes of a bloodbath in the carriages: 'There was blood everywhere, it was a horrible, very violent scene.' The incident once again put the spotlight on the alleged negligence of the British system when it comes to granting asylum or refuge. The Times newspaper points out today that many asylum seekers are abusing British law by claiming to be victims of 'human trafficking,' a fact that alone guarantees asylum, and that the new Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, plans to close this legal loophole. On October 2nd of last year, a British man of Syrian origin stabbed attendees at a synagogue in Manchester, killing two of them, before being shot by police. Jihad al-Shamie had entered British territory as a child and acquired British nationality in 2016. The alleged negligence of the authorities in granting asylum or nationality is being opportunistically exploited by the fastest-growing party in the polls, the far-right Reform UK of the controversial Nigel Farage, and is pushing traditional parties, even the Labour Party, to toughen their rhetoric on immigration.
'It was like something out of a movie, it didn't seem real,' a witness told The Sun newspaper.
Numerous knife attacks in recent years
Yesterday's attack raised alarm as it adds to numerous similar assaults in recent years: the British Press Agency has recorded at least ten knife attacks across the UK since 2013 — excluding brawls between gangs — of which at least eight had a clear terrorist motive. The most recent in memory is last Monday's attack, when an Afghan who had refugee status since 2022 apparently attacked three people without reason, killing one of them.
