No one was seriously injured in the incident and police said 66-year-old Andrew Leak – who was found dead at a nearby petrol station shortly after the attack – apparently acted alone. “There is nothing to suggest the offender was working with anyone else and there is not believed to be a wider threat to the public,” police said in a statement. The immigration facility in Dover is the first stop for thousands of people making the perilous journey across the Channel to seek asylum in Britain. Evidence from digital media devices suggested the leak was motivated by far-right ideology, although there were also strong indications that Leak’s mental health was a factor in the attack, police said, adding that investigations were ongoing. “I am satisfied that the suspect’s actions were driven primarily by an extremist ideology. This meets the threshold for a terrorist incident,” said Tim Jacques, senior national co-ordinator for counter-terrorism policing. Immigration is a hot political issue in Britain. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Britain was a compassionate and welcoming place for asylum seekers, but that depended on the country’s ability to effectively police its borders. Sunak’s interior minister, Suella Braverman, is under heavy criticism for describing the arrival of asylum seekers as an invasion. Report by Sarah Young. Editing: Toby Chopra and Helen Popper Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
