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A think tank warned two months ago that terrorist Sudesh Amman was up for early release, before he was eventually freed last week and launched a bloody knife rampage in London yesterday.  

The 20-year-old extremist was shot dead by officers in Streatham, South London - a mile from his bail hostel - on Sunday afternoon at about 2pm after he went on a horrific rampage, stabbing two people. 

Amman had been jailed for three years and four months in December 2018, when he pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing terrorist documents including bomb making manuals and knife fighting guides. But he was released automatically just days ago, despite fears he still held extremist views, paving the way for his attack. 

Metropolitan Police officers were seen overnight combing through a bail hostel in Streatham, where Amman is believed to have lived following his automatic early release from prison. 

Detectives from the Counter Terrorism Command said they were searching two residential addresses - one in South London and the other nearly 40 miles away in the Hertfordshire market town of Bishop's Stortford. 

No arrests have been made. Amman's terrifying attack has raised disturbing questions about the supervision of freed terrorists and whether they should face tougher sentences and more stringent monitoring.

The right-leaning Henry Jackson Society identified Amman as an extremist close to automatic early release in December, warning that he was still too dangerous to be freed.

Head of Communications Sam Armstrong told MailOnline today: 'Amman had a lot of risk indicators: lack of remorse at sentencing, evidence of encryption, relatively young age, allegience to extremist group, ie ISIS.

'Every extremist risk indicator you could possibly have. It was obvious to us that he was one of the most high-risk extremists around.

'Looking at the level of how closely he was monitored he would have been in the top five considered by security services in the UK.

'That level of detail is phenomenally expensive. There is no way he wasn't one of the most dangerous offenders in the UK.'

Armed police shoot dead extremist Sudesh Amman, who was wearing a fake suicide vest, after he grabbed a knife from a shop and stabbed a man and a woman in a brutal high-street rampage in Streatham, South London, at about 2pm yesterday

Sudesh Amman, 20, from Harrow in North West London, had previously fantasised about carrying out a terror attack with a blade or with acid while riding a moped and had been jailed in December 2018 - before being released just days ago 

Police seal off a bail hostel last night on Leigham Court Road in Streatham, around a mile from the scene of yesterday's attack

Police load items into a car in Streatham overnight as they search a bail hostel. The extremist had been jailed for three years and four months in December 2018, when he pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing terrorist documents

Some of the items, which include electronics and handwritten notes, seized from the terrorist's hostel in Streatham overnight

In December the think tank warned that up to 180 convicted Islamist terrorists had been released from jail early over the past two decades, with court records showing 187 of the 264 jailed before 2015 had been eligible for early release.

The Henry Jackson society identified Amman, with research fellow Dr Paul Stott saying: 'Before considering releasing motivated individuals back into a community whose values they rejected, the authorities must be certain they do not prove a threat to the peace and good order of our society.'

As many as 180 had been freed under license at the time of the report, with an additional seven still in prison - three of whom, including Amman, were due to be released within the next three months.

An additional 33 had received life sentences and 38 more were given indeterminate and extended jail terms, meaning they would only be released after a parole board assessment.

The Ministry of Justice had said that the most serious offenders had sentences that required parole board approval for release.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a review in December into the licence conditions of 74 terrorists who had been let out of jail early, following the London Bridge atrocity by convicted terrorist Usman Khan on November 29

The Henry Jackson Society has now revealed that it identified Amman in December as an extremist close to automatic early release, warning he was still too dangerous to be freed.

The think tank included Amman as part of a 'new wave of released terrorists' in the wake of the London Bridge attack where Khan stabbed Cambridge University graduates Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones to death.

A Whitehall source claimed he was released despite concerns because the law didn't give them the power to keep him in jail.

Residents at the bail hostel where he was believed to have been staying claim he had previously tried to take his life and had been asking for medication.

Speaking after Amman was named as the attacker, Henry Jackson Society fellow Dr Paul Stott said: 'We need an immediate moratorium on the release of terrorist prisoners, whilst the government reviews each individual case.'

Yesterday, while being under active police surveillance and 'very stringent licencing conditions', he launched a horrific knife rampage in Streatham, leaving one man in a life-threatening condition, though he later recovered. 

Police outside the bail hostel in Streatham overnight where Amman is thought to have stayed after his early prison release 

In the rush to get to the scene yesterday, this police car crashed into a driveway on a residential street a mile away 

Wearing a fake suicide vest, Amman stole a 10-inch, £3.99 blade from a convenience store and stabbed the man, in his 40s, in the stomach before knifing a female cyclist, in her 50s, in the back as he ran down the street.

Armed police were on the scene within minutes, having been following him because they suspected he was going to launch a terrorist attack imminently. After he failed to stop, Amman was shot dead outside a Boots chemist.

In the rush to get there, one police car crashed into a driveway on a residential street a mile away. Officers are thought to have called for back-up in a panic after seeing Amman steal the knife before launching his attack, reportedly yelling 'Allahu Akbar'.

Another woman received minor injuries in the attack, believed to have been caused by flying glass following a police gunshot.

Overall, 353 terror criminals and suspects have been released from prison between June 2012 and June 2019, of which 245 were convicted of offences.

Police, security services and probation teams are examining the files of around 200 known extremists with some reportedly facing bans from large towns and cities. 

Photos from the scene in Streatham yesterday show a lifeless body face down on the pavement with what have been described as 'silver canisters' strapped to his chest, while a large knife is lying beside him 

Police load the body of Amman into a private ambulance yesterday evening after he was shot dead in Streatham 

Police look at Amman lying face down on Streatham High Road at about 2pm yesterday (left) then officers back off (right) 

Police were filmed standing behind an unmarked police car and pointing their guns towards Amman in Streatham yesterday

About 70 of the cases relate to convicted terrorists freed on licence before the end of their sentences. At least 20 jihadists are said to be back in London where they committed the terror offences that put them in prison, reported the Sun.

Police car crashes into driveway on route to Streatham attack 

A police car responding to the Streatham attack smashed into a wall a mile away

Armed police were on the scene in Streatham, south London within minutes as Sudesh Amman launched his horrific knife rampage. 

Officers had been following Amman because they suspected he was going to launch a terrorist attack imminently. 

However, in the rush to get to the scene, one armed response vehicle crashed into a driveway on a residential street a mile from the scene.   

The front of the car was severely damaged in the collision.  

Officers are thought to have called for back-up in a panic after seeing Amman steal the knife before launching his attack, reportedly yelling 'Allahu Akbar'.    

ISIS fanatic Amman was jailed for more than three years in December 2018.

The then-18-year-old fantasised about carrying out a terror attack with a blade or with acid while riding a moped and also shared Al Qaeda propaganda on a WhatsApp group used by his family.

When he was sentenced, he couldn't stop laughing, grinning and waving to his mother and brother in the public gallery with no sign of remorse.  

Police found notebooks belonging to the North West London College student when he was arrested, where he jotted down how to make explosives and wrote about how he wanted to be a martyr.

Amman asked his girlfriend to kill her parents because they were 'kuffar', showed her beheading videos and also shared how he was planning a terrorist attack in Queensbury, northwest London, during Skype chats. 

His stash of manuals on bomb making, knife fighting and close combat included the titles Bloody Brazilian Knife Fighting and How to Make A Bomb In Your Kitchen.

Amman posted a link to a pdf copy of the 'Inspire' magazine focusing on the idea of the 'Lone Jihad' in a family WhatsApp group in January this year, exposing children as young as 11 to extremist material.

The document contained an article about 'the successful pressure cooker bomb' and provided detailed instructions on how to maximise casualties through the use of IEDs. 

After he was jailed, Alexis Boon, head of the Met Police counter-terrorism command, said: 'His fascination with dying in the name of terrorism was clear in a notepad we recovered from his home.' 

At the time of his trial, prosecutor Kelly Brocklehurst said: 'The defendant had discussed with his family, friends and girlfriend his strong and often extreme views on jihad, the kuffar, and his desire to carry out a terrorist attack.

Police inspect the suspect (left) after he was shot and lying face down on the pavement (right) wearing a fake suicide vest

Officers raced to the scene outside a supermarket in Streatham at around 2pm on Sunday following reports of gunfire

'Much of his fascination with conducting an attack was focused on using a knife but reference was also made to committing acid attacks on mopeds.

'The Crown contends that the defendant's interest in Islamic extremism and Daesh in particular is more than a mere immature fascination with the taboo and with graphic violence. 

'He is clearly someone with sincerely held and concerning ideological beliefs which motivate him to collect and disseminate such material.

'For example, he is seen telling his girlfriend in online chat how he has declared a pledge to Islamic State and wishes to purge society and carry out acid attacks. 

'Elsewhere he is seen telling her he prefers the idea of a knife attack over use of bombs.'

After being jailed for his offences, he was automatically released just a few days ago, after serving half of his sentence, despite authorities being concerned that he still held extremist views. 

A Whitehall source said this evening: 'He was under surveillance, that is what allowed police to do their job so quickly. 

'It could have been much worse than it was.

'There had been concerns when he was in prison but there were no powers for any authority to keep him behind bars.

'There was nothing that could be done to keep him behind bars under existing laws, hence why he was under surveillance and strict licencing conditions.

'He had served half of his sentence, which was more than three years, so had to be released despite concerns over his conduct.

'The public will look at this case and say why was this individual not kept behind bars and the Prime Minister shares that view.

'This shines a light on something that clearly needs addressing.'

The source added that the 'very stringent' licencing conditions included a curfew.

In one video, police toting machine guns and masked undercover officers are seen approaching Amman's body before rapidly moving away from the area

Scotland Yard declared the broad daylight carnage as a terror-related incident around an hour after first reports from the scene

Boris Johnson has said he will announce plans on Monday for 'fundamental changes to the system for dealing with those convicted of terrorism offences' following the terror-related incident in south London.

In a statement, the Prime Minister said: 'My thoughts are with the injured victims and their loved ones following today's horrific attack in Streatham.

'I want to pay tribute to the speed and bravery of the police who responded and confronted the attacker - preventing further injuries and violence - and all of the emergency services who came to the aid of others.

'An investigation is taking place at pace to establish the full facts of what happened, and the Government will provide all necessary support to the police and security services as this work goes on.

'Following the awful events at Fishmonger's Hall in December, we have moved quickly to introduce a package of measures to strengthen every element of our response to terrorism - including longer prison sentences and more money for the police.

'Tomorrow, we will announce further plans for fundamental changes to the system for dealing with those convicted of terrorism offences.' 

David Chawner, 31, a stand-up comedian who witnessed the attack, told ITV's Good Morning Britain of the attack: 'I was speaking to an armed police officer and he seemed distressed at how long the paramedics took.'

Asked about how Amman was a known threat, he added: 'It makes me angry, it makes me frustrated like I think so many people are, but I think just the mundanity of it the regularity of it the fact that it was just a normal street on a Sunday

'There were people still riding bikes really annoyed (saying) 'can I just get through'? Normal life goes on.

'I've become immune to this because I was actually caught up in the London Bridge attacks recently as well. I was on the Bridge when it happened because I work around there - I was doing some filming around there.'

Knifeman who believed in rape, beheadings and killing non-believers: How Streatham attacker Sudesh Amman, 20, was jailed for having bomb-making manuals, planned an atrocity over Skype, and urged his girlfriend to kill her own parents 

When he was jailed for 13 terror offences, Sudesh Amman couldn't stop laughing.

The teenage extremist with a fascination for knives refused to stand for the judge at the Old Bailey and spent his sentencing hearing in December 2018 smiling and waving to his mother and brother in the public gallery.

Wearing a black prayer cap and long black tunic, Amman smirked when he was told that he was facing a sentence of just three years and four months.

The then 18-year-old Islamic State fanatic kept a notebook in which he wrote that his 'goals in life' were: 'Die as a shuhada', which means martyr, and 'go to jannah', which translates as paradise.

The Old Bailey heard the maths and science student at North West London College told his girlfriend to kill her parents and tried to radicalise his younger brothers.

He also sent Isis recruitment material and shared an Al Qaeda magazine to a family WhatsApp group that included his three younger brothers aged between 11 and 15, telling one of them he wanted to 'blow myself up'. 

ISIS fan Sudesh Amman, 18, was sentenced at the Old Bailey after he pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing terrorist documents

Amman was said to obsessed with knives and had bought a combat knife and airgun in readiness for a terror attack. He had downloaded a number of manuals showing how to kill people, including one called Bloody Brazilian Knife-Fighting Techniques.

The 79-page manual included instructions on inflicting damage to the body with knives and how to target the vital organs in order to inflict 'quick loss of consciousness and death'.

Another manual called Close Combat was a 113-page US Marine Corps training manual which included instructions and photographs on how to use a combat knife to target the neck, groin and heart.

Chillingly, he asked if he could have a knife delivered to his girlfriend's address and told her he considered Islamic State to be the best thing to happen to Islam.

He sent her beheading videos, advising her: 'If you can't make a bomb because family, friends or spies are watching or suspecting you, take a knife, molotov, sound bombs or a car at night and attack the tourists (crusaders), police and soldiers of taghut (enemies of Islam), or western embassies in every country you are in this planet.'

He told the girl he was thinking of conducting a terrorist attack in Queensbury, near his home in north-west London, and had conducted reconnaissance.

Photos from the scene show a lifeless body, thought to be that of Sudesh Amman, face down on the pavement with what have been described as 'silver canisters' strapped to his chest with a large knife is lying beside him

Armed police shot Amman dead after his horrific knife rampage in Streatham this afternoon

Paramedics treat a victim of the horrific Streatham terrorist attack that took place on Sunday

Kelly Brocklehurst, prosecuting, said: 'Much of his fascination with conducting an attack was focused on using a knife but reference was also made to committing acid attacks on mopeds.'

Amman was arrested by armed police in a street in Harrow after posting an image to an encrypted forum of a knife along with two firearms on an Isis flag and the Arabic words: 'Armed and ready, April 3.' The date was said to be a reference to a letter posted to mosques by a Right-wing activist declaring the date 'Punish a Muslim Day'.

When police searched the home where Amman lived with his mother and five younger brothers they found an airgun, a combat knife and a notebook with bomb-making instructions. Police then looked at Amman's computer and realised he had been discussing extreme views on jihad.

File photograph issued by the Metropolitan Police of a BB gun found in the home of Amman, who was sentenced to three years and four months in jail in December 2018 after he pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing terrorist documents

File photograph of a combat knife found in the home of Sudesh Amman, who was jailed for more than three years in 2018

Photographs posted to his family WhatsApp group showed his brothers in their bedroom posing with an Isis flag and BB guns. In a discussion about school with his 15-year-old brother, Amman said he would 'rather blow myself up' and wanted to 'know how to make bombs'.

He expressed the belief that Yazidi women – a group Isis committed genocide against in Iraq – are slaves and therefore the Koran 'makes it permissible to rape them'.

Amman later admitted possessing documents containing terrorist information and seven of disseminating terrorist publications.

Commander Alexis Boon, head of Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command, said Amman had a 'fierce interest in violence and martyrdom'. 

A former neighbour, Savita Khimani, 51, said Amman's mother still believed he was wrongly accused even after he was convicted. 

Mrs Khimani, whose son Jignesh went to school with the jihadi, said: 'He was a normal boy at school. There were no red flags at all. Sudesh had no social media whatsoever.'  

Police will AGAIN feel utterly let down by the judiciary: PHILIP FLOWER says there is a wider problem of maintaining the moral of officers charged with keeping the public safe from these maniacs 

Boris Johnson has promised to put an end to soft sentencing and the early release of convicted terrorists – but I fear yesterday's bloody events on the streets of south London show the hollowness of politicians' words over the decades.

At first glance, this looks alarmingly like a repeat of the London Bridge attack last year.

Then, the perpetrator, Usman Khan, 28, had been released halfway through a 16-year sentence. Mr Johnson insisted lessons had been learned, and would be acted upon. 

However, the record of recent years speaks differently. Politicians promise to take the fight to the judiciary, but they tend to retire hurt in the face of a confected clamour about human rights.

At first glance, yesterday's bloody events on the streets of south London look alarmingly like a repeat of the London Bridge attack last year, writes PHILIP FLOWER. Pictured: Passers-by tackle the London Bridge killer, who was on a tag

As many as 40 of the 264 fanatics convicted of Islamist-inspired terrorism between 1998 and 2015 had their sentences reduced on appeal.

At least seven have been jailed again since their release or had to return to prison for breaking licence conditions, including some caught spreading hate online or trying to travel to join Islamic State.

After his release, Khan went on to kill two Cambridge graduates last year.

Then, the perpetrator, Usman Khan, 28, (pictured) had been released halfway through a 16-year sentence.

Yesterday's attacker seems also to have been a convicted terrorist who had been released, and was under close surveillance from the plain-clothes armed police who shot him when he launched his deranged assault.

A S a retired senior police officer involved in containing terrorist and other threats during a 40-year career, I want to tell you of the intense frustrations that will be felt today across British policing. They will feel utterly let down by the judicial system.

When I was a constable, I could arrest and process a suspect in an hour, maximum. Today, it takes a day or more.

The police are mired in bureaucracy, while the judicial system has become an institutional cloud-cuckoo land.

As a society, we have to decide how to deal with terrorist suspects. It takes around 32 police officers to maintain around-the-clock surveillance of a single terror suspect.

Then, the perpetrator, Usman Khan, 28, (pictured) had been released halfway through a 16-year sentence

It is insane to attempt to maintain this level of supervision of the thousands of individuals known to be of interest to the security services and counter-terrorism police. It seems as though the Streatham perpetrator was being watched by armed police, yet still he managed to stab shoppers.

I am proud and relieved that we are not a totalitarian society, but at what cost do these liberties come?

If we are to release convicted terrorists from jail early, then we would have to recruit thousands and thousands more police to oversee them, which of course will never happen because there is not enough money and we would find that level of intrusion unacceptable in a free society.

There is a wider problem of maintaining the morale of the officers charged with keeping the public safe from fanatics. 

Bluntly, how would you feel if you were told to keep track of known terrorists who have been released from prison to satisfy the politically correct assumptions of our justice system?

I remember a few years ago arriving at work when my junior officers seemed dispirited. I asked them what was wrong. 

They explained that the night before they had arrested a robbery suspect. He was 14, a refugee from Somalia, and entirely unconcerned by the consequences of his crime. He said he had grown up with an AK-47 in his hand and was not remotely scared of anything the Metropolitan Police could throw at him.

I worry about this point more than any other. The police of course have to respect the law and the courts, and accommodate individuals from other countries and cultures.

But the police and security services are fighting this domestic and global terrorism threat with one hand behind their backs. Or to put it another way, they are going on to the pitch in their cricket whites while the opposition is firing automatic rifles around their ears. There is another factor here. When I retired from the Metropolitan Police a few years ago, I told the Commissioner that what I feared most in my retirement was the prospect of murderous attacks from lone-wolf terrorists.

With their fake suicide vests, terrorists like the one yesterday in Streatham (pictured) – and Usman Khan on London Bridge – seem to be asking to be shot dead, writes PHILIP FLOWER

Yesterday's attack seems likely to have been at root what we in law enforcement tend to refer to as 'suicide by cop'. With their fake suicide vests, terrorists like the one yesterday in Streatham – and Usman Khan on London Bridge – seem to be asking to be shot dead.

This is a relatively new and difficult policing challenge. In my day, counter-terrorism tended to mean the threat from the IRA, plus some relatively minor aggravation from animal rights extremists.

But those people wanted to fight for their causes, not necessarily die for them as a weird, self-sacrificial, futile gesture. The lone wolf is different. In counter-terrorism, intelligence is always the first line of defence. This could come from informants, colleagues, worried family members, and banks monitoring financial transactions.

The lone wolf generally eschews any of these social interactions, so is much harder to track down. Too often, he (and it's almost always a male) will be a low-achiever whose mental health has been compromised by drug use.

He probably does not have a job, but is paid state benefits that enable him to sit alone at home, endlessly scouring poisonous material on the internet. He probably doesn't have a girlfriend and may well be estranged from his family. He is fundamentally disconnected from society and any social group.

When I talk to former colleagues still serving in the police, they say they worry more about the scores of home-grown would-be mass-murderers sitting in their bedsits scouring the internet than any direct threat from IS forces in Syria or Iraq.

The challenge for us is how to engage with these people and take them out of the grip of their blind hatred. And to ensure that, if we have identified them and found them guilty, they are never released on the streets to maim and kill, as has tragically happened on too many occasions.

Philip Flower is a former chief superintendent with the Metropolitan Police

'I saw this man running towards me... I could hear three or four shots... He fell to the floor': Witnesses tell of horrifying moment suspect was gunned down by police after 'terror attack' stabbing rampage in south London

Shocked witnesses have shared their horror after being caught up in the terror attack in south London this afternoon. 

Scotland Yard confirmed at least three people were injured in the attack on High Road in Streatham at around 2pm and have been taken to hospital.

Armed police shot dead the attacker, who appeared to have been wearing a fake suicide vest, after he stabbed three people. 

Now, witnesses at the scene have revealed how they saw the shocking rampage unfold. 

A woman reacts near to the scene where the knife rampage took place in Streatham, south London this afternoon

The woman and other shocked locals shortly after the terrifying incident took place today

Nardos Mulugeta, 52, a mechanical engineer who lives in Streatham, said he heard gunshots before seeing one victim lying in the street.

He said: 'I heard a shot and then there was a 20-second gap. Then there were three or four shots together.

'I went over and I saw the first victim, a male victim on the ground, near the White Lion Pub, and people were helping him.

'Then five minutes later a woman came over and said I've been stabbed too in the back. And then people starting helping her.

'I saw one body laying down further away. He was face-down between Argos and Iceland. It's really scary.'

David Chawner, who looked after one victim, said: 'I was going to the cinema. I saw what I thought was just a shop lifting. 

'I saw someone run down the street, bump into someone and then they fell to the ground, got up again, and then somebody shouted and then I heard what I thought was a car backfiring.

Officers raced to the scene outside a supermarket on High Road in Streatham at around 2pm today following reports of gunfire

Scotland Yard declared the broad daylight carnage as a terror-related incident around an hour after first reports from the scene

Armed police have shot dead a suspected terrorist feared to be wearing a suicide vest after he grabbed a knife from a shop and stabbed a man and a woman during a brutal high-street rampage in south London 

'I didn't assume it was a gunshot until I saw what later turned out to be two officers pointing guns at an assailant on the road. It was only then that I saw someone on the other side of the road was down and I went over to him and unfortunately the poor bloke was not lucid.

'And because I was going to the cinema I always carry a blanket with me. It's a stupid thing but I always get really cold in the cinema. So I took that out my bag and gave it to them to compress the wound. 

'At this point in time my only concern was the poor person that I had seen on the street who was bleeding out in a pool of their blood.

'Anybody in that situation would see someone in dire need of medical attention your prime objective is to make sure that person is ok.

Photos from the scene show a lifeless body face down on the pavement with what have been described as 'silver canisters' strapped to his chest with a large knife is lying beside him 

'I witnessed a lot of blood, a lot of gore but it would be wrong for me to go into more details.'

A 19-year-old student from Streatham, who did not want to be named, said: 'I was crossing the road when I saw a man with a machete and silver canisters on his chest being chased by what I assume was an undercover police officer, as they were in civilian clothing.

'The man was then shot. I think I heard three gun shots but I can't quite remember.

'After that, I ran into the library to get to safety.

'From the library, I saw a load of ambulances and armed police officers arrive on the scene.'

Richard Mustonen-Smith, 59, a response pastor for Ascension Trust, has lived in the area all his life and said: 'I'm shocked it's happened in Streatham. I've been here all my life. We're always getting accidents down here but not this.

'My grandson was in the Odeon and they got told to go out the back because there was a bomb. They got them to go out of the back of the cinema. They were there to watch a film.

'When it's a member of your family so close to you you don't expect it. You're always worried about your family being on the streets but this is even worse.

'I heard two people got stabbed and apparently one man was shouting Allahu Akbar but people thought he was just a crazy man, so he got away. Apparently he had two rucksacks.'

Laura, 31, who was watching a film at the time of the attack, said: 'A police officer in the street said there had been an incident and showed me an alternative route back onto the high street where it was safe.'

Jonathan Bartley, co-leader of the Green Party and councillor for the St Leonard's ward on Lambeth Council, said: 'There's absolute shock and disbelief from residents that are around. There was an immediate sense of panic and fear when it happened.

'My partner was just down at the traffic lights and a woman ran up and said 'there's been a shooting' and another broke down next to her and said she feared for her daughter's life.

'There is that initial sense of fear and worry when this happens. But when you see the emergency services respond, you suddenly feel reassured.

'The police called it a terrorist incident very quickly and very early on.' 

'Madam, a terrorist has been shot dead ... they've got a possible IED vest - which is a bomb': How the horror unfolded on quiet Sunday afternoon on leafy suburban London high street

It was around 2pm on an otherwise ordinary Sunday afternoon when the Streatham attacker began his bloody rampage.

In the Life Cafe, diners enjoying lunch were oblivious to the terror until a police officer burst in.

He shouted: 'We've got to evacuate. There's been a terrorist incident... If you want to stay safe, you'll listen to me.'

Witnesses said the terror began when the attacker, later revealed to be 20-year-old Sudesh Amman, walked into the Low Price hardware store before choosing his deadly weapon, said to be a £3.99 kitchen knife

Asked by a waitress if they could have half-an-hour to finish their meals, his response was clear: 'Madam, a terrorist has been shot dead just down there.

'They've got a possible IED vest on them, which is a bomb. If you want to stay open for half-an-hour and you want to put people's lives in danger, be my guest.'

Outside the horror was clear to see. 

The terrorist had been shot dead outside a Boots chemists after a team of undercover officers brandishing handguns swooped.

Filmed by a bystander from a passing bus, shocking footage shows the men in jeans, trainers and hoodies pointing their firearms at the attacker's convulsing body.

In the Life Cafe, diners enjoying lunch were oblivious to the terror until a police officer burst in. Asked by a waitress if they could have half-an-hour to finish their meals, his response was clear: 'Madam, a terrorist has been shot dead just down there'

One of the officers kicks away a knife on the pavement before backing off. 

A third officer skids on to the scene on a blue motorbike while another ushers onlookers away from the scene shouting: 'Get away.'

As the bus drives on, it passes two victims lying on the pavement. 

Two innocent bystanders, a man and a woman, had been stabbed in broad daylight in front of dozens of horrified onlookers on one of south London's busiest shopping streets.

Next to one victim, a pushchair was abandoned on the pavement as members of the public desperately tried to give first aid.

It was around 2pm on an otherwise ordinary Sunday afternoon when the Streatham attacker began his bloody rampage. The Life Cafe is pictured above

A horrified witness is pictured above at the attack scene in Streatham. Witnesses told how the attacker was felled by up to four gun shots which made shoppers flee

Firearms team crashes on the way to the scene: Officers stand by the crumpled wreck of unmarked police BMW after it hit wall in Streatham Common yesterday

Fearing an explosion from the attacker's 'suicide vest', dozens of shoppers had been ordered to take shelter behind the closed shutters of Boots and a WHSmith store.

Families in a nearby Odeon cinema were interrupted mid-way through their films and evacuated by police. 

Witnesses said the terror began when the attacker, later revealed to be 20-year-old Sudesh Amman, walked into the Low Price hardware store before choosing his deadly weapon, said to be a £3.99 kitchen knife.

Shopkeeper Jagmon Singh watched Amman, dressed in a grey tracksuit and a black and grey top, pluck the knife off the shelf and unpeel the packaging. Maybe believing him to be a shoplifter, he tried to wrestle it off him.

'The shopkeeper tried to get the knife from him but he got away and stabbed a woman on a bicycle,' said a nurse who saw the horror. 'The knife was really big.'

The female victim, said to be in her 40s, was stabbed along with a man outside the neighbouring White Lion pub.

Witnesses said the terror began when the attacker, later revealed to be 20-year-old Sudesh Amman, walked into the Low Price hardware store before choosing his deadly weapon, said to be a £3.99 kitchen knife

As the attacker lay 'convulsing and twitching' on the floor, officers cautiously approached and kicked his knife away

The terrorist had been shot dead outside a Boots chemists after a team of undercover officers brandishing handguns swooped. The terrorist is pictured wearing a fake suicide vest, left, and brandishing a knife, right

Mechanical engineer Nardos Mulugeta, 52, saw the injured man outside the pub and said police arrived almost immediately. 

'I saw a guy lying down in front of the pub with stab wounds across his stomach,' he told the Daily Mail.

'About ten minutes later, a woman came in and said she had also been stabbed. I had ran over because I was smoking further down the road and heard a shot.

'At first I thought it might have been a car backfiring. Then I heard three or four further shots. People were running so I went to investigate. That's when I saw a guy on the floor next to the pub. He had very bad injuries to his stomach.

'He was going pale. People were saying 'Stay with us' and talking to him. Then another woman came and knelt at the Low Price Store.

'She said, 'He stabbed me in the back'. Two people started helping her. A policeman came and asked if any other people had been stabbed.'

Comedian David Chawner, 31, was on his way to the Odeon when he saw two police officers in plain clothes pointing firearms at the attacker outside Boots, around 300ft from the Low Price Store.

Fearing an explosion from the attacker's 'suicide vest', dozens of shoppers had been ordered to take shelter behind the closed shutters of Boots and a WHSmith store. Police are pictured above patrolling near the scene

'I ran to the other side of the road where I saw a white, possibly European victim on the ground, bleeding from the lower abdomen,' he said.

'I tried to compress the bleeding. I ran off as instructed to flag down the ambulance.'

Shockingly, Mr Chawner said it took more than 30 minutes for paramedics to arrive. 'I'm shaking. I'm still in shock,' he added.

Witnesses told how the attacker was felled by up to four gun shots which made shoppers flee.

Daniel Gough said he ran with them, adding: 'There was panic, people were yelling. A young girl running alongside me kept asking 'Is this what I'm meant to do?' 

She was very distressed. After a few minutes, I went back and saw a policeman and he yelled, telling everyone to get back.

'His gun was pointing in the direction of a man on the floor. Suddenly, more police appeared. There were [officers] everywhere.'

As the attacker lay 'convulsing and twitching' on the floor, officers cautiously approached and kicked his knife away.

To their horror, they saw a suspected suicide vest strapped to his stomach. Video shows the officers quickly retreating before evacuating nearby buildings.

Richard Mustonen-Smith, 59, a pastor at the Ascension Trust, said: 'My grandson was in the Odeon and they got told to go out the back because there was a bomb.

'When it's your family, you don't expect it. You're always worried about your family being on the streets but this is even worse.'

Witnesses told how the attacker was felled by up to four gun shots which made shoppers flee. Forensic officers are pictured on Streatham High Road last night

Retired accountant John Woods, 64, was in a Wetherspoon's pub when people ran inside following the sound of gunfire.

'I went outside and it was obvious they were undercover police,' he said. 

'There were a number of men armed but wearing normal clothes. From when I heard the shots and walked to the door, the police were already there. They must have been following him. There were black cars stopped.'

Dozens of emergency vehicles raced to the area and an air ambulance landed on nearby Tooting Bec Common. Last night forensic officers were combing the scene.

Many residents who had been evacuated were told it would be hours before they could go home.

The London Ambulance Service said the first paramedics arrived at the scene four minutes after being called just before 2pm.

Did the Streatham terrorist launch his horrific knife rampage AFTER realising he was being followed by police? 

The terrorist shot dead in Streatham today may have started his horrific rampage after realising he was being followed by police, a security expert has suggested. 

The suspect, 'well known' to counter-terror police, is thought to have been the subject of a live police investigation at the time of his attack.  

Police confirmed he was shot dead as part of a 'proactive Counter Terrorism operation', suggesting he was being monitored before launching his rampage.   

Scotland Yard confirmed at least three people were injured in the attack and have been taken to hospital.

David Videcette, a former counter-terrorism officer who investigated the 7/7 attacks in London, has also suggested that the attacker may have launched his rampage shortly after realising he was under surveillance. 

Photos from the scene show a lifeless body face down on the pavement with what have been described as 'silver canisters' strapped to his chest with a large knife is lying beside him 

Mr Videcette tweeted: 'It's being said the dead suspect entered Low Price Store on Streatham High Road, picked up a knife, removed the packaging, and then stabbed a man and woman - he was then shot dead moments later by armed, plain clothes police officers.

'As I said earlier, this all points towards an armed police surveillance team, on a pre planned operation, having to react to a spontaneous event in front of them, perhaps even after the suspect identified he was being surveilled.' 

Streatham MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy told the BBC: 'The perpetrator was shot dead by police. The police and the emergency services have been fantastic in their response.

'They got here quite quickly, responded to the incident, taking down the perpetrator, who, as you may know, they had been watching for some time, so hopefully we'll hear more information about that tomorrow.'

Police have also confirmed that the attack is Islamist related and that the suicide vest strapped to his body was a fake. 

Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D'Orsi said in a statement: 'At approximately 2pm on Sunday, February 2 two people were stabbed in Streatham High Road, Lambeth.

'As part of a proactive Counter Terrorism operation, armed officers were in immediate attendance and shot a male suspect, who was pronounced dead at the scene. A third person also received minor injuries - believed to have been caused by glass following the discharge of the police firearm.

David Videcette, a former counter-terrorism officer who investigated the 7/7 attacks in London suggested the attacker may have launched rampage after realising he was being monitored

'A device was found strapped to the body of the suspect and specialist officers attended. 

'Cordons were put in place and it was quickly established that this was a hoax device.

'Three victims have been taken to south London hospitals. One man is being treated as life-threatening, one woman has non-life threatening injuries and another woman has minor injuries.

'My thoughts are with the victims and their loved-ones at this time.

Armed police have shot dead a suspected terrorist feared to be wearing a suicide vest after he grabbed a knife from a shop and stabbed a man and a woman during a brutal high-street rampage in south London 

'The situation has been contained and officers from the Met's Counter Terrorism Command are now leading an investigation into the incident. The incident was quickly declared as a terrorist incident and we believe it to be Islamist-related.

'However as you would expect, officers continue to work in the area to ensure there is no continuing danger to the public and that all evidence is gathered. Streatham High Road remains closed at this time, and cordons are in place. We will reopen these as soon as we can.'