United Kingdom: 14-year-old boy dies stabbed on London bus

A 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death Tuesday afternoon on a bus in southeast London, police said, the latest example of the scourge of knife violence in the United Kingdom.

Called to the Woolwich district early Tuesday afternoon, the London police indicated in a press release that “emergency services treated a 14-year-old boy on site who had been injured with a stab, but he is unfortunately died shortly after their arrival.

No arrests have been made at this stage, said the police, who called on possible witnesses to come forward. This attack is the latest in a long list in the country, which has seen the number of incidents involving bladed weapons increase. In September, a teenager was stabbed to death in the same area of ​​Woolwich.

In total, more than 50,500 incidents involving knives were recorded by police in England and Wales between March 2023 and March 2024, an increase of 4% compared to the previous year, according to figures from the Department from the inside.

Between March 2022 and March 2023, 82% of teenage victims of homicides were killed with knives, compared to 73% over the same period the previous year, according to the latest official figures available. In September, a law came into force banning machetes and “zombie” knives (double-edged weapons with curved blades) associated with gang culture, the use of which has doubled in five years.

Witness, victim or perpetrator of violence?