Kaleigh Watterson
BBC News Online

Image source, Reuters

There's confusion from some shoppers because not everyone has been told why the Arndale is closed, particularly on busy Market Street.

There, the centre's doors are closed but there are no signs advising people what is happening.

Many are stopping to speak to police officers and members of the media and wondering why they are unable to enter the usually rammed shopping centre, which does bill itself "the centre of the city".

North West Ambulance service says it has been "stood down" from the scene of multiple stabbing in Manchester city centre.

Thirteen ambulances, four hazardous response vehicles, two advanced paramedic a, two doctors and two officers attended the incident at Manchester Arndale this morning.

Four people have been injured in a knife attack at the Arndale Centre in Manchester city centre.

Two women, including a 19-year-old, are in a stable condition in hospital, while a man in his 50s is also being treated in hospital for stab wounds, police said.

North West Ambulance Service said one patient had suffered "serious" injuries.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The shopping centre has been evacuated and trams have stopped operating at Exchange Square outside the entrance.

A spokesperson for the force said: "In these early stages, we are keeping an open mind about the motivation of this terrible incident and the circumstances as we know them.

"Given the location of the incident and its nature officers from Counter Terrorism Police North West are leading the investigation as we determine the circumstances."

Counter-terrorism police investigating the stabbings at Manchester Arndale Centre say they're keeping "an open mind about the motive".

A witness reported seeing a man "running around with a knife lunging at multiple people".

Image source, Getty Images

Three people have been treated for for stab wounds, one with serious injuries.

A man in his 40s is under arrest.

In May 2017, Manchester suffered one of Britain's worst terrorism incidents when an Islamist suicide bomber killed 22 people and injured more than a hundred at a concert by the American pop star Ariana Grande.

Home Secretary Priti Patel tweets, external that she is "very concerned" by the incident at the Arndale Centre and says it's now important police are "given space" to carry out their investigation.

"I am, as always, very grateful to the police for running towards danger to keep us safe," she adds.

Here are some more images from the the scene of the stabbings.

Eyewitnesses have described panic and screams and how shop shutters were lowered as crowds ran away.

Greater Manchester Police appeal to the public and media to send in images and footage of the Arndale incident.

Meanwhile, police officers are gathering at a rendezvous point at Piccadilly Gardens.

"Please don't be alarmed", said a spokesman for Greater Manchester Police.

Kaleigh Watterson
BBC News Online

Image source, PA

There’s a helicopter hovering up above and police cars stationed around, with a large cordon set up close to Selfridges.

This should be a busy Friday afternoon of shopping in Manchester, and there’s an eerie atmosphere as the city centre’s largest mall is deserted.

People are gathered around watching the police activity, but others seem to be carrying on with their day.

A man was Tasered by police after five people were stabbed at Manchester's Arndale Centre.

The arrested man has been held on suspicion of serious assault.

One person is being treated for "serious" injuries after the stabbings in the Arndale Centre according to North West Ambulance Service.

Image source, Reuters

Manchester MPs have taken to Twitter to thank the emergency services for their response.

Labour MP for Manchester Central, Lucy Powell, tweets: "Terrible news coming from the Arndale today. Thoughts are with all those caught up in it and with our frontline services dealing with it."

Afzal Khan, Labour MP for Manchester Gorton, says: "Shocked to hear of the incident at Manchester Arndale. My thoughts are with those who have been injured. Huge thanks as always to our front line emergency services who are working hard to respond and keep the public safe."

It's believed at least one of the stab victims was attacked outside a branch of Starbucks Coffee in the Arndale Centre.

A spokesman for the chain says:

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Counter Terrorism Police North West are leading the investigation even though officials have not labelled the events as a terrorist incident.

Nick Aldworth, former counter terrorism national coordinator, tells the BBC: "The advantage of bringing in specialists early on is that you don't end up playing catch up later.

It also gives investigators "immediate access into the intelligence services" and allows them to build a more "comprehensive" picture quicker, he says.

Mr Aldworth adds it can take quite a long time to establish whether it is a terror-related incident.

"Quite often it's actually hard to un-weave what a person's motives are."

With over 200 shops the Arndale Centre, also known as Manchester Arndale, is a major shopping mall in the centre of Manchester.

It is home to both High Street brands and smaller boutiques and has a range of restaurants and cafes.

In 1996 it was the site of an huge IRA bomb explosion which devastated the shopping area and injured 220 people.

After the bomb, Manchester received about £583m in private and public funding towards its regeneration, which saw it attract upmarket retailers such as Selfridges and Harvey Nichols.

The shopping centre reopened in 1999.

Councillor Nigel Murphy, Deputy Leader of Manchester City Council, said the incident is "under control" but urged the public not to speculate.

He said: "It would be helpful if people could stay away from the scene to allow them to do their work.

"We would like to thank the public for their co-operation and of course to thank the police and others who are managing this situation.

"We would encourage people not to speculate about this incident but to refer to trusted official sources for updates."

Eyewitness Feroze Bilal tells the BBC: “I was in the town centre, I was on my way to the gym ad all of a sudden I saw people evacuating the building, every single shop started closing down and there was police turning around and evacuating the building.

"People were screaming and running.”

Three people were stabbed in the incident at the Manchester Arndale centre, according to the latest information from police.

Greater Manchester Police have updated their information in a new statement:

"We were called to reports of a multiple stabbing at the Arndale shopping centre at 11.15am earlier today (Friday 11 October 2019).

At this stage we believe that four people were injured during the incident – not five as previously reported. We will update as the situation becomes clear.

A 19-year-old woman– was taken to hospital with stab wounds. Another woman was also taken to hospital with stab injuries. Both their conditions are described as stable.

A man in his 50s has also been taken to hospital with stab wounds.

A fourth victim – a woman in her 40s - who was not stabbed – has been assessed and did not need to go to hospital following assessment by paramedics.

A man in his 40s – who was arrested at the scene on suspicion of serious assault – remains in custody for questioning."

North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) says it has treated four patients - and one has suffered "serious" injuries.