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Six Injured In Suspected Acid Attack Near Mall In East London

Six Injured In Suspected Acid Attack Near Mall In East London

Six people were reportedly injured in “a number of attacks” possibly involving acid near a shopping center in east London on Saturday night, according to Metropolitan Police.

A police spokesman told the Evening Standard that police were called to an area near Stratford shopping center before 8 p.m. local time, responding to reports of “a group of males spraying what is believed to be a noxious substance.”

At least one man has been arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm.

A 28-year-old man who was at the scene of the attack told the Guardian that, after the attack, a victim and his friend ran into a restroom at a fast food restaurant “to wash acid off his face.”

“There were cuts around his eyes and he was trying to chuck water into them,” the witness, who identified himself as Hossen, told the Guardian.

Witnesses said that an argument broke out among a group of people before the attack, according to BBC.

London Ambulance Service officials said they have treated at least six victims and have taken three of them to the hospital.

“We have sent a number of resources to the scene including paramedics in cars, ambulance crews an incident response officer and our Hazardous Area Response Team,” officials said in a statement.

None of the injuries appear to be life threatening.

Mark White, a correspondent for Sky News U.K., said in a tweet that police told him the “suspected mass acid attack” is not believed to be an act of terrorism.

Witnesses tweeted photos of emergency responders treating the victims behind privacy screens.

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