Man with Palestinian flag climbs London's Big Ben, is surrounded by emergency services
LONDON (AP): Roads around the Palace of Westminster in London were closed on Saturday as emergency services tried to reach a man who climbed the Big Ben tower holding a Palestinian flag.
Photos show the barefoot man, who appeared to be staging a protest, standing on a ledge several meters (yards) up Elizabeth Tower, which houses Big Ben.
Officials said tours of the Houses of Parliament were canceled because of the incident.
Westminster Bridge and a nearby street were closed for much of Saturday and several emergency services vehicles were at the scene as crowds looked on from behind a police cordon.
The Metropolitan Police said officers were “working to bring the incident to a safe conclusion,” alongside firefighters and ambulance services. Police said it received reports about the man around 7 a.m. Saturday. The intruder was still high up the tower Saturday afternoon.
Three emergency workers were lifted up on a fire brigade ladder platform and were seen using a megaphone to speak to the man on the ledge.
No other details were immediately available.
#WATCH: #UK police closes the area around #BigBen in #London after a man holding a #Palestinian flag climbed up the tower housing the famous clock and bell https://t.co/wRNA7hP9v7 pic.twitter.com/L8KvhouWVS
— Arab News (@arabnews) March 8, 2025
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Bengal: On way to PM's rally, 3 mowed down by train amid dense fog
Kolkata (PTI): Three persons died and three others were injured after being hit by a train amid dense fog on Saturday, while travelling to attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally at Taherpur in West Bengal's Nadia district, a senior official said.
The incident occurred between Taherpur and Badkulla railway stations under the Sealdah-Krishnanagar section of Eastern Railway, he said.
Modi, whose helicopter could not land at Taherpur due to dense fog and low visibility, condoled the death of the “BJP workers” in his virtual address from Kolkata airport.
“I have come to know that some BJP workers, while travelling to the rally, lost their lives in a rail accident. My condolences are with the families of those who have lost their loved ones, and I pray for the speedy recovery of the injured,” Modi said.
The Eastern Railway official told PTI that the incident occurred in the morning when these people, who were travelling by a bus, had stopped the vehicle and walked to the railway tracks to answer nature's call.
"While three persons died on the spot, two others with injuries were admitted to a local hospital," he said.
Another person with minor injuries was released after having been administered first aid, the official said.
The deceased have been identified as Ramprasad Ghosh (74), Shaktipada Sutradhar (55) and Gopinath Das (38).
Meanwhile, Mahua Moitra, Trinamool Congress MP from Krishnanagar constituency in Nadia district, alleged that the BJP ignored the incident and went ahead with the rally.
"Terrible tragedy hushed up at altar of @narendramodi ego. @BJP4India supporters brought from far Murshidabad for PM rally in Ranaghat today," she said in a post on X.
"4 went to answer nature's call and were killed by 31814 down local train near Taherpur. BJP ignored, blacked out & went ahead with rally," Moitra claimed.
Reacting to her remarks, the West Bengal BJP, in a post on X, asserted that the TMC "has always been adept at milking tragedies", and was being "disrespectful to the unfortunate victims of this tragedy".
The TMC alleged that BJP leaders have not shown "neither concern nor compassion" over the mishap.
"The loss of three lives in Taherpur should have united everyone in grief. But @BJP4India leaders showed neither concern nor compassion," it said in another post on X.
"At this painful moment, Smt @MamataOfficial and Shri @abhishekaitc put humanity above party lines and stood beside the families of the deceased," the party said.
TMC’s on-ground leaders promptly reached out to the grieving family members, ensuring them of help and assistance, it said.
"While Delhi’s rulers chase Bengal with arrogance, our leadership chose empathy. This is the difference between politics of power and politics of people!" the TMC added.
