The explosion, which left one dead and one injured, occurred on Sunday morning. Four men were arrested in connection with the investigation.
The explosion of the taxi in front of a hospital in Liverpool (northern England) on Sunday was described as a “terrorist incident” by British police.
The blast, which left one dead and one injured, took place around 11 am on Sunday as the UK commemorates the victims of war on “Remembrance Sunday”.
The taxi driver, sensing that his passenger was suspicious, stopped the car. It appears that he got out of the vehicle after the explosion but before the flames consumed the passenger compartment. Injured, he was taken care of and is now out of the hospital, the police said in a statement.
Four men were arrested
As part of the investigation, three men – aged 29, 26 and 21 – were arrested in the Kensington area of Liverpool under the Terrorism Act, police said on Sunday evening.
At a press conference, Russ Jackson, in charge of the region’s counterterrorism police, added that a fourth man, aged 20, was arrested on Monday, and that the homemade bomb that had exploded in the taxi , setting it on fire, had been “made” and brought into the vehicle by the passenger.
“We are aware that commemorative events were taking place minutes from the hospital when the explosion took place. We cannot make a connection, but it is a line of inquiry that we are pursuing,” added the police officer.
The driver’s “incredible courage”
MI5 is involved in the investigation, said Russ Jackson. “I want to thank the emergency services for their speed of intervention and their professionalism as well as the police for their continuous work on the investigation”, reacted the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The latter also praised “the incredible presence of mind and courage” of the taxi driver who managed to extricate himself from the burning passenger compartment, according to The Guardian.