According to The Telegraph, the victim was a British soldier who was just yards from the Royal Artillery Barracks in the southeast London area of Woolwich when two Muslim men ran over him with their car. They then jumped out of the car and began hacking at the man with meat cleavers and knives in an attempt to behead him while shouting "Allahu Akbar!"
The attack took place on the sidewalk in front of dozens of people.
“These two guys are chopping this guy to pieces, literally hacking at something like it’s a bit of meat," said one witness who did not wish to be named. "These two guys were crazed, they were just animals. They then dragged the poor guy from the pavement and dumped his body in the middle of the road.
“They were standing there with the knives in their hand, waving the gun about. There were police at the end of the road but there were no police in the vicinity of the attackers. I think they were proud of what they were doing.”
It took police more than 20 minutes to arrive on the scene. By then the man was dead and his body dragged into the road while his attackers were seen strutting about and asking people to photograph or film them.
One of the men, who is believed to be a British-born Muslim convert, spoke calmly into a witness’s video phone.
“We swear by almighty Allah we will never stop fighting you until you leave us alone. Your people will never be safe. The only reason we have done this is because Muslims are dying by British soldiers every day.
“We must fight them as they fight us. An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. I apologize that women had to witness this today but in our lands our women have to see the same. You people will never be safe. Remove your government, they don’t care about you. Do you think David Cameron is going to get caught in the street when we start busting our guns? Do you think your politicians are going to die? No, it’s going to be the average guy like you, and your children. So get rid of them. Tell them to bring our troops back so we, so you can all live in peace.”
Another witness said the two appeared to be praying next to the body at one point as if the dead soldier was a "sacrifice" to Allah.
When police finally arrived, the two rushed at them and were shot by a female officer. Both are currently under heavy guard in separate hospitals.
British Prime Minister David Cameron called the attack "absolutely sickening" but promised that Britain would "never buckle" in the face of terrorism.
It was certainly providential that on the same day of this attack, Pope Francis was commenting on the need for peaceful co-existence between religions while celebrating morning Mass with the Maronite Patriarch of Antioch and Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, the leader of the Lebanese Christians.
While reflecting on the Gospel passage where Jesus corrects the disciples who prevented a person from outside their group from doing good, he said: “Even the disciples were a little intolerant, closed off by the idea of possessing the truth, convinced that those who do not have the truth, cannot do good … This was wrong . . . Jesus broadens the horizon.”
He added: "To say that you can kill in the name of God is blasphemy.”
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