Girl, 11, and woman stabbed in London’s Leicester Square

Man arrested as police cordon set up near area popular with tourists in UK capital

A girl, 11, and her 34-year-old mother have been taken to hospital after being stabbed in London's Leicester Square on Monday.

Police arrested a man in connection with the incident, which took place at a TWG Tea shop at 11.36am.

A police cordon sealed off much of the well-known tourist area, near the Lego store and M&M's World.

The Metropolitan Police said the two victims had been taken to a major trauma centre but described their injuries as non-life threatening. There is no suggestion that the incident is terrorism-related, the force added.

A police officer stands at the scene in Leicester Square, an area popular with tourists to the UK capital. AP

The man in custody is thought to be the only suspect. He is not believed to be known to the victims.

The square and the surrounding area draw an estimated 2.5 million visitors every week.

The incident comes as Britain has stepped up security following riots across the country last week.

The unrest was sparked after rumours that an illegal migrant was responsible for killing three girls at a Taylor Swift-themed event in Southport.

Hero who wrestled blade from attacker

A security guard said he “jumped on” and took a knife from the assailant, earning him praise on social media.

The guard, 29, who gave his name as Abdullah, said he had worked in security at the TWG Tea shop for “seven to eight months”.

“I heard a scream, at that moment I saw there was one person, roughly mid-thirties or early thirties, and he was, like, stabbing a kid,” Abdullah told PA. “I jumped on him, held the hand in which he was [carrying] the knife and just put him down on the floor and just held him and took the knife away from him.

“Then a couple of more people joined in as well and we just held him until the police came. It took maybe three to four minutes for the police to arrive and then they took him into custody.”

He and his colleagues gave first aid to the child before the police joined in, he said.

“I saw a kid getting stabbed and I just tried to save her. It’s my duty to just save them.”

'I’ve never seen a thing like that'

Desmond, who performs as Darth Vader in Leicester Square 'every day', said he saw a man stab the girl several times. PA

Another witness, who gave his name as Desmond, said the attacker focused the attack on the girl, putting her in a headlock and stabbing her.

Desmond, 45, who performs as Darth Vader on the square “every day”, saw the man stab the girl several times.

He said the woman and girl appeared to be relatives or known to each other as they had been together before the attack happened.

“It was so terrible, I’ve never seen a thing like that,” he added. “I was heart-broken, I saw the woman was screaming with all her strength.”