Arrest as girl, 11, and woman, 34, stabbed in London’s Leicester Square

A man has been arrested after an 11-year-old girl and 34-year-old woman were stabbed in London’s Leicester Square .

The Metropolitan Police said the two victims had been taken to a major trauma centre after the attack in the tourist hotspot on Monday.

There were no immediate details about how badly injured they were.

The man is in custody and he is thought to be the only suspect.

It is currently unclear whether the man was known to the victims.

The square and the surrounding area have an estimated 2.5 million visitors every week and are home to shops, theatres, cinemas and restaurants.

A police cordon sealing off the crime scene surrounded the double doors of the TWG Tea shop, which is beside the Logo store and in front of the M&Ms store.

In a statement, police said: “Officers are at the scene of a stabbing in Leicester Square.

“A man has been arrested and is in custody.

“We don’t believe there are any outstanding suspects.

“Two victims, an 11-year-old girl and a 34-year-old woman, have been taken to hospital and we await an update on their condition.”

A London Ambulance Service spokesman said: “We were called at 11.36am on Monday August 12 to reports of a stabbing at Leicester Square.

“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an advanced paramedic and an incident response officer. We also dispatched members of our tactical response unit.

“We treated a child and an adult at the scene and took them to a major trauma centre.”