Armed police investigating the 21 July attempted bombings have surrounded two properties in a block of flats in west London in a major operation. Eye witnesses say they heard three shots and a large explosion as officers wearing gas marks entered the property. The area, around Basing Street, near Notting Hill, has been cordoned off, and the area has been evacuated. One eye witness says a man dressed in a white forsenic suit has been taken away in an unmarked police car. Breaking / EFL
UPDATE: The area, around Dalgarno Gardens, North Kensington, has been cordoned off, and the area has been evacuated. Police are seeking three men in connection with the attempted bomb attacks on 21 July in London Police are continually shouting at someone in the flat to come out. They are addressing him as "Muhammad". The police are asking him: "What is the problem? Why can't you come out? "Take your clothes off. Exit the building. Do you understand?"
Officers are telling other residents on the 350-property estate to "get inside now". Scotland Yard say they are not aware of firearms having been used. One eyewitness says a man dressed in a white forensic overall has been taken away in an unmarked police car. Another has spoken of seeing three other people being taken away in a police van. Chris Stokes told BBC News: "We got told to move out of the way by armed police and within about five minutes we heard three gunshots go off behind the block of flats at Tavistock Crescent." Allan Sneddon, who lives nearby, told BBC News: "There was this almighty bang... big enough to shake the ground."
BBC Correspondent Jane Hughes said: "Police are regarding this as a very significant event - a very significant piece of police activity. " She said loud noises heard by witnesses may have been explosives used to blow in the door to a property and CS gas may have been used to subdue people.