London on high alert: UK police conduct ’controlled explosion’ outside US embassy, Gatwick Airport evacuates terminal

UK authorities carried out a ‘controlled explosion’ outside the American embassy in London after a ‘suspicious package’ was found on Friday. The update came even as Gatwick Airport said that a “large part” of its south terminal “has been evacuated as a precaution while we continue to investigate a security incident”.

“We can confirm that the ‘loud bang’ reported in the area a short time ago was a controlled explosion carried out by officers. Enquiries are still ongoing and cordons will remain in place for the time being,” the force wrote on X.

Meanwhile the US embassy confirmed that local authorities were investigating “a suspicious package” outside the building. A post on X added that the police had closed a nearby road “out of an abundance of caution”.