U.K. Arrests Six Terrorism Suspects During Pope Benedict's State Visit
Bloomberg
U.K. Arrests Five Terrorist Suspects During Pope's State Visit to Britain
By Thomas Penny - Sep 17, 2010 Five street cleaners were arrested in London on suspicion of plotting a terrorist attack as Pope Benedict XVI addressed lawmakers on the first papal visit to the U.K. in 28 years.
“Following today’s arrests the policing arrangements for the papal visit were reviewed and we are satisfied that our current policing plan remains appropriate,” London’s Metropolitan Police said in an e-mailed statement. “The itinerary has not changed.”
The five men were arrested this morning on suspicion of commission, preparation or instigation of terrorist acts, the police said. Westminster City Council, whose district the pope is due to visit today, said the men worked for Veolia Environmental Services Plc, one of its contractors.
Benedict, 83, spoke at Westminster Hall, part of the Houses of Parliament, and the place where Thomas More was sentenced to death in 1535 for opposing King Henry VIII’s break with the Roman Catholic Church. He met former premiers including Margaret Thatcher, Catholic convert Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, who invited him to Britain.
Father Federico Lombardi, a papal spokesman, told reporters in London that the pope’s trip will continue “with courage and joy” and that the Vatican was confident in the work of Scotland Yard and has no plans to change the pontiff’s schedule.
No Weapons
Police said the five men, between the ages of 26 and 50, were questioned at a central London police station after their 5:45 a.m. arrest. Initial searches at a business in the city center yielded no weapons or explosives, police said.
A spokesman for Veolia Environmental Services in London referred callers to Westminster City Council. A spokeswoman for Veolia Environnement SA in Paris, where the company is based, wasn’t available for immediate comment.
“Veolia and Westminster City Council work closely with the relevant authorities to constantly ensure that all the people working on their behalf are subject to work checks as prescribed by the Home Office to assess their eligibility to work in the country,” the Council said in a statement. “We are confident that these checks are robust and we will continue to work with the police and other authorities during this investigation.”
Benedict attended an assembly for 4,000 young people in southwest London today, where he talked about the benefits of Catholic education. In a reference to the scandals over child abuse by priests that have rocked the church, he made special mention of teachers responsible for the welfare of children.
Respect and Trust
“The life of faith can only be effectively nurtured when the prevailing atmosphere is one of respectful and affectionate trust,” Benedict said during a service at St. Mary’s University College, before the assembly.
He also called on students not to be too narrow in their study and ensure they incorporate a religious sensibility into their chosen profession.
“The world needs good scientists, but the scientific outlook becomes dangerous and narrow if it ignores the religious or ethical dimension of life,” he said. Religion also “becomes narrow if it rejects the legitimate contribution of science to our understanding of the world.”
The pope prayed at Westminster Abbey with Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the senior Anglican cleric. The two men held talks at the archbishop’s Lambeth Palace, a home to Catholic bishops before the 16th-century split with Rome.
‘Aggressive Secularism’
Benedict also met today with leaders of other religions to discuss faith in British society and told them of his concern at “living at a time when religious convictions are not always understood or appreciated.”
The pontiff, in a speech before the talks with Williams, said that over the past 50 years in the U.K. “the surrounding culture has grown even more distant from its Christian roots despite a deep and widespread hunger for spiritual nourishment,” reinforcing his comments yesterday about the growth of “aggressive forms of secularism” in Britain.
The pope, who has repeatedly apologized for abuse, told reporters on the plane yesterday of his “shock” when he learned the extent of abuse and that the church had not acted fast enough. Pedophile priests should be kept away “from all possibilities of access to young people because we know that this is a disease and free will does not work where there is disease,” he said, according to a transcript on the visit website.
There are about 5 million Catholics in England, according to the church’s website. There are some 25 million baptized Anglicans in England, about half the country’s population, a Church of England spokesman said.
1534 Split
The Church of England broke from Rome in 1534 after Pope Clement VII refused Henry VIII’s request to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could wed Anne Boleyn.
The pontiff may also meet with U.K. victims of clerical sexual abuse, although “these meetings are never confirmed so as not to give them excessive publicity and ensure that they are serene and spiritual,” Vatican spokesman Lombardi said before the start of the visit.
Tomorrow he will meet with Prime Minister David Cameron and acting opposition leader Harriet Harman prior to a prayer vigil in London’s Hyde Park.
U.K. Arrests Five Terrorist Suspects During Pope's State Visit to Britain
By Thomas Penny - Sep 17, 2010 Five street cleaners were arrested in London on suspicion of plotting a terrorist attack as Pope Benedict XVI addressed lawmakers on the first papal visit to the U.K. in 28 years.
“Following today’s arrests the policing arrangements for the papal visit were reviewed and we are satisfied that our current policing plan remains appropriate,” London’s Metropolitan Police said in an e-mailed statement. “The itinerary has not changed.”
The five men were arrested this morning on suspicion of commission, preparation or instigation of terrorist acts, the police said. Westminster City Council, whose district the pope is due to visit today, said the men worked for Veolia Environmental Services Plc, one of its contractors.
Benedict, 83, spoke at Westminster Hall, part of the Houses of Parliament, and the place where Thomas More was sentenced to death in 1535 for opposing King Henry VIII’s break with the Roman Catholic Church. He met former premiers including Margaret Thatcher, Catholic convert Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, who invited him to Britain.
Father Federico Lombardi, a papal spokesman, told reporters in London that the pope’s trip will continue “with courage and joy” and that the Vatican was confident in the work of Scotland Yard and has no plans to change the pontiff’s schedule.
No Weapons
Police said the five men, between the ages of 26 and 50, were questioned at a central London police station after their 5:45 a.m. arrest. Initial searches at a business in the city center yielded no weapons or explosives, police said.
A spokesman for Veolia Environmental Services in London referred callers to Westminster City Council. A spokeswoman for Veolia Environnement SA in Paris, where the company is based, wasn’t available for immediate comment.
“Veolia and Westminster City Council work closely with the relevant authorities to constantly ensure that all the people working on their behalf are subject to work checks as prescribed by the Home Office to assess their eligibility to work in the country,” the Council said in a statement. “We are confident that these checks are robust and we will continue to work with the police and other authorities during this investigation.”
Benedict attended an assembly for 4,000 young people in southwest London today, where he talked about the benefits of Catholic education. In a reference to the scandals over child abuse by priests that have rocked the church, he made special mention of teachers responsible for the welfare of children.
Respect and Trust
“The life of faith can only be effectively nurtured when the prevailing atmosphere is one of respectful and affectionate trust,” Benedict said during a service at St. Mary’s University College, before the assembly.
He also called on students not to be too narrow in their study and ensure they incorporate a religious sensibility into their chosen profession.
“The world needs good scientists, but the scientific outlook becomes dangerous and narrow if it ignores the religious or ethical dimension of life,” he said. Religion also “becomes narrow if it rejects the legitimate contribution of science to our understanding of the world.”
The pope prayed at Westminster Abbey with Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, the senior Anglican cleric. The two men held talks at the archbishop’s Lambeth Palace, a home to Catholic bishops before the 16th-century split with Rome.
‘Aggressive Secularism’
Benedict also met today with leaders of other religions to discuss faith in British society and told them of his concern at “living at a time when religious convictions are not always understood or appreciated.”
The pontiff, in a speech before the talks with Williams, said that over the past 50 years in the U.K. “the surrounding culture has grown even more distant from its Christian roots despite a deep and widespread hunger for spiritual nourishment,” reinforcing his comments yesterday about the growth of “aggressive forms of secularism” in Britain.
The pope, who has repeatedly apologized for abuse, told reporters on the plane yesterday of his “shock” when he learned the extent of abuse and that the church had not acted fast enough. Pedophile priests should be kept away “from all possibilities of access to young people because we know that this is a disease and free will does not work where there is disease,” he said, according to a transcript on the visit website.
There are about 5 million Catholics in England, according to the church’s website. There are some 25 million baptized Anglicans in England, about half the country’s population, a Church of England spokesman said.
1534 Split
The Church of England broke from Rome in 1534 after Pope Clement VII refused Henry VIII’s request to annul his marriage to Catherine of Aragon so he could wed Anne Boleyn.
The pontiff may also meet with U.K. victims of clerical sexual abuse, although “these meetings are never confirmed so as not to give them excessive publicity and ensure that they are serene and spiritual,” Vatican spokesman Lombardi said before the start of the visit.
Tomorrow he will meet with Prime Minister David Cameron and acting opposition leader Harriet Harman prior to a prayer vigil in London’s Hyde Park.
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