Police officers carry flowers left by people next to the police cordon at the scene of multiple stabbings in Reading, Britain, June 21, 2020. (Courtesy: Reuters photo)

Reading knife attack: The UK Police has called the knife attack that left three people dead and several others wounded in the southern English town of Reading an act of terrorism, Reuters reported.

The police officers stated that in the town of Reading (65 km west of London), a man ran into a park full of locals and attacked people with a knife before he was restrained and detained by unarmed officers, the report said.

The lone attacker, who is reportedly believed to be a Libyan refugee, was identified by the British media as 25-year-old Khairi Saadallah.

He was apprehended minutes after the incident was reported to the police, and he was arrested on suspicion of murder.

Reports stated that Saadallah had come to Britain a few years ago as a refugee following the civil war in Libya.

Reuters stated that the victims of the stabbing attack have not yet been identified.

In a meeting with security officials, senior ministers, and police on Sunday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that he was “appalled and sickened” by the attack and added that if needed Britain would make appropriate changes in the laws to prevent any future incidents. “If there are changes that need to be made to our legal system to stop such events happening again, we will not hesitate to take that action,” Johnson said.

PTI reported that the park was teeming with large crowds that had gathered in the sun when the stabbing took place. The police carried out an armed search operation in a block of flats in Reading to nab the knife-wielding suspect, the report added.

The local Thames Valley Police have launched a murder inquiry into the incident and trying to ascertain the motive behind the incident.

The incident is the deadliest terrorist attack to have struck Britain since the 2017 London Bridge attack where 11 people, including three attackers, were killed.