Car Explodes In Front Of Liverpool Hospital, British Anti-terror Police Arrest Three People

Police Line Illustration (Unsplash/David von Diemar)

JAKARTA - British anti-terror police have arrested three men after a vehicle exploded outside a hospital in the northern English city of Liverpool on Sunday, killing one person and injuring another, local police said.

A male passenger in the car was pronounced dead at the scene, while the male driver was injured and is in hospital in stable condition, police said.

Anti-terror police officers said they were investigating the case with local police, with them keeping an open mind about what had happened.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said his thoughts were with the people affected, with Home Secretary Priti Patel saying he was kept updated on a regular basis.

Three men aged 29, 26, and 21 were detained in the Kensington area of the city and arrested under the UK's Terrorism Act, police said in a statement.

Police Chief Serena Kennedy said police were called to reports of a car explosion just before 11.00 GMT outside Liverpool Women's Hospital, as the Memorial Service commemorates Britain's Remembrance Day at nearby Liverpool Cathedral.

Police said they knew the car involved was a taxi that had stopped at the hospital shortly before the explosion.

"Work is still going on to establish what happened," Kennedy told reporters.

"We are keeping an open mind as to what caused the explosion but given how it happened, to be careful, Anti-terror police are leading an investigation supported by Merseyside Police."

For information, police said the explosion had not been declared a terrorist incident at this stage.