The London police carried out this Friday the controlled detonation of a suspicious package identified near the United States Embassy after cordoning off the area around the diplomatic compound as a precaution.
“We can confirm that the “loud detonation” that recently occurred in the area was a controlled explosion. investigations are ongoing and cordons will remain in place for the time being,” the London Metropolitan Police said on social media.
The North American embassy had also confirmed on social networks the temporary closure of the establishment for the same reason, as well as the police presence in the London district of Nine Elms, where it is located.
British security forces have asked the population to “refrain from speculating on social media about what happened,” without giving further details at this time.
The United States moved its embassy from Mayfair, central London, to a purpose-built 12-story glass cube in the neighborhood in 2018, partly for security reasons. The former industrial area is now home to dozens of luxury apartment blocks next to Battersea Power Station, a 1930s building recognizable by its red bricks and white chimneys, redeveloped as a shopping and tourist center.
