23:25 (GMT+4) Britain’s transport police said they had received a report of one woman suffering a minor injury and no other casualties following a reported incident at London’s Oxford Circus underground station, Reuters reported.
Police continue to advise people to avoid the shopping district in central London, and to seek shelter inside buildings if they are already in the area.
22:45 (GMT+4) Panic erupted among Christmas shopping crowds on London’s Oxford Street on Friday evening as armed officers raced to respond to reports of shots being fired in the area but police said later they had found no evidence of gunfire or casualties, Reuters reported.
Oxford Street, with its festive window displays and hundreds of overhead lights, was crammed with shoppers taking advantage of the Black Friday sales when the incident happened shortly after dusk.
London’s Metropolitan Police said in a statement they had found no evidence of gunfire, casualties or any suspects and that the incident, which lasted for just over an hour, had been stood down.
“Given the nature of the information received, the Met responded in line with our existing operation as if the incident was terrorism, including the deployment of armed officers,” they said in a statement.
A Reuters witness said panicked shoppers had fled Oxford Street and Oxford Circus underground station.
The witness saw an elderly lady and a man carrying his child knocked over in the rush. “There were people running in all directions. I didn’t know which way to run,” the witness said.
Britain’s transport police said they had received a report of one woman suffering a minor injury in the panic.
The capital’s transport operator, Transport for London, said Oxford Circus and Bond Street stations, which had been briefly shut due to the incident, had later reopened.