According to Sunday Times, Harbi Ali Kullane was a former adviser of Somalia’s prime Minister. He claimed that counter-terrorism police had visited his home.
“I feel very traumatized.” He said, “It’s not something I expected or even hoped for.”
British authorities have yet to release the identity of the suspect in Friday’s killing of David Amess, a Conservative lawmaker aged 69. However, British media reported that Ali Harbi Ali was the suspect. Ali Harbi Ali is a British citizen of Somali descent.
Amess was a long-serving lawmaker who was repeatedly stabbed during a regular meeting of his constituents at Leigh-on-Sea’s church. This town is about 40 miles (62 km) east London.
The Metropolitan Police described the attack as terrorist and stated that early investigations had suggested “a possible motivation linked to Islamist Extremism.” However, they did not give details.
It is not clear what the suspect’s connection was to Amess, if any.
The suspect was taken into police custody on suspicion of murder, but has not been charged. Police were granted additional time to question him. BBC and other media reported that the suspect was referred by a government program to prevent people from supporting extremism years ago. However, he claimed he wasn’t a subject of formal interest for security service personnel.
Many people in Leigh-on-Sea, a seaside resort, have given flowers to Amess in his memory. He is a father of five and has been a member of parliament since 1983. Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 2015. The town will hold a church service later in the day. Police in north London continued searching an apartment and another address for the murder suspect, while officers stood guard outside.
Friday’s murder renewed concerns about the dangers politicians face in their work. Five years ago, Jo Cox, Labour lawmaker from West Yorkshire was murdered by a far right extremist in her constituency.
Priti Patel, Home Secretary, stated Sunday that officials were reviewing security arrangements for lawmakers. The measures under consideration include protection of police during regular meetings between legislators and constituents, also known as “surgeries.”
Patel said that she didn’t believe the murder of Amess would change the relationship between legislators and voters.
She stated that “This should never,ever break that link between an elected rep and their democratic role and responsibility, and duty to the people who voted them in,” Sky News reported on Sunday.
Lindsay Hoyle (Speaker of the House of Commons) said that he is working closely with the Home Office as well as the police to find ways to improve the safety of lawmakers. He said, however, that he was not going to hide like Patel.
“The essence of being a MP (Members of Parliament) is to help our constituents and be seen by them. They elected us to represent them. Therefore, making ourselves available to them is the cornerstone for our democracy,” Hoyle wrote in The Observer or Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Council of Somali Organizations, which works in Somali communities throughout the U.K. condemned the killing and said it was an “affront all of our values, as well as our democratic society.”
