Female nursery worker slashed by three women chanting "Allah"

A nursery worker was slashed after being attacked by three women who shouted "Allah", her colleague has said.
The woman was slashed in Wanstead, north east London. Picture: GoogleThe woman was slashed in Wanstead, north east London. Picture: Google
The woman was slashed in Wanstead, north east London. Picture: Google

The woman was set upon as she travelled to work at a nursery in Wanstead, north east London.

The colleague, who did not want to be named, said the victim had "three Asian girls behind her chanting the Koran, 'Allah'".

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She added: "They pulled her to the ground, punched her, kicked her. One of them pulled out a knife and cut her arm from her wrist to her elbow.

"The police turned up, the ambulance cleaned her wounds up."

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said they were called at 9:36am on Wednesday to reports of an assault in Hermon Hill.

He said: "Officers and London Ambulance Service attended and found a woman, aged in her 30s, with a slash wound. Her injuries are not life-threatening.

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"She has been taken to an east London hospital as a precaution.

"The suspects fled the scene prior to police arrival in an unknown direction.

"No arrests have been made. Enquiries continue."

"Counter-terror officers are aware of the incident but it is not being treated as terrorism at this stage," the Met spokesman added.

The victim, described as a white woman, was attacked by three women "dressed all in black" less than 10 minutes' walk from the nursery at around 9.30am, her colleague said.

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She insisted the incident was not related to the nursery or their work.

Asked about her colleague's condition, she added: "She's okay, considering. Obviously it's a shock, she's in shock. She was in tears and she had a cut right up her arm.

"Her stomach was hurting, she had marks all over her, her hair was pulled out."

Paul Ashmore, 31, a mixing and mastering engineer in South Woodford, said his fiancee and child were held on lockdown at Wanstead Church School, a 30-second walk from the incident.

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He said his fiancee called him to say the school was not allowing anyone to leave "because there was a stabbing outside", and added that the police did not know "where the persons who did it were".

They were initially told it was gang-related, he said.

"My instant thought was to collect my fiancee and kid and get them to safety not knowing the full extent of what was happening. But I was thinking the worst.

"I instantly, after what has been happening regarding terrorists, thought the worst and informed her I will drive up to collect them," Mr Ashmore said.