Westminster terror suspect arrives at court in an armoured police van after being charged with attempted murder for ‘ramming into cyclists outside Parliament’

From the Daily Mail

An alleged terror attacker who crashed into barriers outside the Houses of Parliament last week has arrived at court this morning. Salih Khater, of Birmingham, is facing two counts of attempted murder, following the alleged attack in Westminster last Tuesday.

The 29-year-old Sudanese-born suspect, who is a British citizen, is accused of purposefully driving his Ford Fiesta into pedestrians and cyclists before swerving towards police officers.

Police said prosecutors will be treating his case as terrorism due to the method of the alleged attack, the targets selected and the high-profile location. Khater was driven into the grounds of Westminster Magistrates’ Court in an armoured police van this morning and is due before court later today.

Khater’s older brother Mustafa previously said Salih had ‘never been radicalised’ and insisted: ‘It was an accident. I’m sure he’s innocent’.

Friends have described Khater as a quiet loner who spent much of his time listening to pop music, smoking shisha and surfing online at an internet cafe below his old flat in the Sparkhill area of Birmingham.

He had also been studying accountancy at Coventry University but dropped out in May. Friends said he had wanted to be a pharmacist but failed a course at a Birmingham college because his English was poor.