Our live coverage is now closed. We are still keeping an eye on developments, and will bring you the latest lines as they come in.

As a reminder, the police have asked the public to help find Abdul Shokoor Ezedi. Anyone who sees him should call 999 immediately, and not approach him.

In the meantime, you can read more on this story:

• Abdul Shokoor Ezedi last seen at King's Cross
• Witnesses recount 'horrific' alkali attack

• Clapham attack suspect Abdul Shokoor Ezedi convicted of sex offence in 2018

Image source, Metropolitan Police

We will be closing our live coverage shortly.

Before we go, here's a reminder of what the Met's Commander Jon Savell said today about the vitims of the corrosive attack, and the continuing manhunt for Abdul Shokoor Ezedi:

• Cdr Savell said the 31-year-old mother - who, along with her children, was injured in the alkali attack - remains "very poorly" in hospital. Her injuries are said to be life-changing
• He said the children's injuries "aren't as serious as first thought, and they are not likely to be life-changing". They however remain in the care of the NHS with their mother
• Cdr Savell went through a timeline of Ezedi's known whereabouts, and said he was last seen on the London underground heading south on the Victoria line
• He called on the public to call 999 if they spotted Ezedi, but not to approach him
• Cdr Savell ended his remarks by appealing to Ezedi himself to "do the right thing and hand yourself in"

With three of the UK's biggest police forces at the core of a nationwide hunt for a man accused of an alkali attack on a mother and two young girls in south London on Wednesday, the BBC has been piecing together what is known so far.

What happened in Clapham?

Initial reports said a 31-year-old woman and her two young girls - aged three and eight - were seriously hurt after the substance was thrown at them on Lessar Avenue, near Clapham Common, at 19:25.

What do we know about the suspect?

Police named the suspect as 35-year-old Abdul Shokoor Ezedi, originally from Afghanistan before later being granted asylum.

Detectives believe he is known to the family who were injured in Clapham, but said they were not yet clear on their relationship.

Where is the Clapham attack suspect?

The attack took place at 19:25 and he boarded a train at 19:33 at Clapham South tube station. At 20:00 he was at Kings Cross station, and the last confirmed sighting was on a Victoria line tube heading south at 21:00.

Are the Clapham attack victims still in hospital?

Yes. The mother is still "very poorly and is sedated", police said, but her daughters' injuries were not as bad as first thought.

The five responding police officers who were injured were taken hospital and later discharged, as were three women who came to the aid of the family.

You can read more on all these questions here.

Earlier today, BBC News reported incorrectly that Ezedi was not eligible for asylum under Home Office guidelines as a result of his sexual assault conviction. These guidelines do not apply to asylum cases. The story has now been removed.

Have corrosive substance attacks gone up?published at 18:38 Greenwich Mean Time 2 February

18:38 GMT 2 February

The number of attacks involving corrosive substances has fallen in the official figures in each of the past three years.

Police forces across England and Wales recorded 472 violence against the person and robbery crimes involving a corrosive substance in the year ending March 2023.

This is the latest available data, external and it is down about 10% from 525 the previous year.

In the year ending March 2021 it was 557, and the highest on record was in 2020, when there were 619 such offences.

Data on this type of offence only began to be collected by the Home Office in 2019.

Devon and Cornwall and Greater Manchester Police were unable to supply data for some of the years listed.

The Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle have issued a statement confirming that the Clapham attack suspect was known to them.

A spokesperson said: “We can confirm that Abdul Shakoor Ezedi was a client of our diocesan Justice and Peace Project, a charitable venture which assists a wide range of people who come to us in need.”

The church group also said they were “in the process of checking" if Ezedi had been "received into the Catholic faith" and if he had been given any other support.

Ezedi's asylum claim was granted after he told an immigration tribunal he had converted to Christianity which would put him at risk if he was returned to Afghanistan, where he is believed to be from.

We have more now concerning the process that granted Abdul Shokoor Ezedi asylum in Britain.

Labour has written to Home Secretary James Cleverly saying that the attack in Clapham "raises very serious questions" about the asylum process.

Ezedi, who reportedly came to the UK from Afghanistan, was convicted of sexual assault and exposure in 2018 and given a suspended sentence.

He then went on to be granted asylum in 2020.

The letter from shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper, which has been seen by the PA news agency, questions whether the home secretary in 2018 "considered deportation" following the conviction.

Helena Wilkinson
reporting from Clapham

We now have a much clearer picture of Ezedi's movements before the Clapham attack, and for a short time after.

His car is picked up numerous times as he travels from Newcastle to London, leaving in the very early hours of Wednesday morning - the day of the attack.

By 06:30 GMT, his car has been spotted in Tooting, South London. The vehicle is then seen in several different London boroughs.

It appears in Croydon ten hours later, then at 19:00 GMT he's seen driving in Streatham.

At 19:25 GMT, the attack happens on Lessar Avenue in Clapham. Just eight minutes after the attack, he's seen getting on a tube at Clapham South station.

Image source, Metropolitan Police

After that he's picked up a few times. Then at exactly 21:00 GMT he's on another tube from King's Cross, southbound on the Victoria line. That's the last sighting police have got.

After that, the trail goes cold. Where did he go next? This latest urgent police appeal is aimed at the public, asking for their help to find him.

But there was also a direct appeal to Ezedi himself from police to hand himself in.

The Metropolitan Police give an update on the injuries of the mother and daughter hurt in the alkali attack in Clapham, south London.

Commander Jon Savell said the mother remains "very poorly" but the young girls' injuries are not as serious as first thought.

George Bowden
BBC News

There is a notable police presence on the Victoria line, where it has just been announced the Clapham attack suspect was last seen.

British Transport Police officers are on board trains and have a visible presence at stations like Oxford Circus.

Police have just released new images of Ezedi boarding the Victoria line tube at King's Cross station.

Image source, Met Police

Image source, Met Police

Cdr Savell finished the conference by making a plea to Abdul Shokoor Ezedi himself.

He said: "I am going to make a personal appeal to him: Abdul you've clearly got some serious injuries and clearly need some medical help.

"So do the right thing and hand yourself in."

Police say they will soon be releasing more images of their suspect.

Stay with us.

Savell has been giving a rundown of the timeline of what detectives know:

• Ezedi left Newcastle in the very early hours of Wednesday morning, and travelled to London.
• At 06:30 he was in the Tooting area, and there was a further sighting of his vehicle at 16:30 in Croydon and then at about 19:00 he was in the Streatham area
• The attack took place at 19:25 in Clapham, and at 19:33 he boarded a train at Clapham South Tube station
• At 20:00 he was at Kings Cross station and about 20:45 he was captured on CCTV footage at Tescos with significant facial injuries
• We now know that at 21:00, he got on a Victoria line tube heading south

Met police are working closely with various police and Transport for London to search for Ezedi.

Cdr Savell added that a large team of detectives are leading the manhunt all the way up to Northumberland. He said that last night five search warrants took place, two in east London and three in Newcastle and the police have uncovered significant evidence.

He urged the public to help find Ezedi by calling 999 if they see him, but not to approach him.

Commander Jon Savell is addressing reporters now.

The 31-year-old mother remains very poorly and is sedated, he says, and her injuries are expected to be life-changing.

As for the two young children that were with her, aged eight and three, their injuries are not as serious as first thought, Savell says.

He adds that "a large team of very experienced detectives" are leading the manhunt to find Ezedi.

Commander Jon Savell is delivering a statement now on the latest in the hunt for Abdul Shokoor Ezedi.

You can watch live by pressing Play at the top of this page.

Helena Wilkinson
Reporting from Clapham

I’ve been speaking to an NHS worker who witnessed some of the Clapham attack on Wednesday.

She doesn’t want to be named, but lives in a flat overlooking Lessar Avenue, where it happened.

She described seeing a man lift a young child over his head and throw her onto the ground like a “ragdoll”, twice.

Speaking to the BBC, the woman said the incident was like out of a “horror movie”.

She left her flat to help and saw a neighbour with a baby in her arms.

The woman told me she heard the child say "I want my mum, I want my mum" and she was crying.

She also heard the mother who was attacked in the incident saying “I can’t see, I can’t see”.