By Associated Press - Friday, March 24, 2017

LONDON (AP) - The Latest on the attacks in London (all times local):

8:20 p.m.

A lawmaker who battled to save the life of a police officer stabbed in the Parliament attack has been honored with an appointment as an adviser to Queen Elizabeth II.

British Prime Minister Theresa May’s office says Tobias Ellwood has been named to the Privy Council, a committee of senior lawmakers, judges and others that advises the queen. The institution dates back a millennium, and members are entitled to be addressed as “Right Honorable.”

Security Minister Ben Wallace, who helped coordinate the government response to Wednesday’s attack, has also been named to the Privy Council.

Ellwood, a former army officer whose brother died in the 2002 Bali bombing, gave mouth-to-mouth-resuscitation to Constable Keith Palmer after he was stabbed by attacker Khalid Masood as he was guarding the Parliament. Palmer died of his injuries.

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8:05 p.m.

British police say six of the 10 people being held in connection with the attack near Britain’s Parliament have been released without charge.

The two women and four men were all arrested in the central England city of Birmingham, where attacker Khalid Masood recently lived. All had been arrested on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts.

Four other people remain in custody as police try to learn how Masood became radicalized and went on a rampage Wednesday in London with an SUV and knives that killed four people. He was later shot to death by police.

Police believe Masood acted alone but want to know whether others helped him prepare the attack.

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4:35 p.m.

Britain’s most senior faith leaders gathered near the country’s Parliament to mourn the victims of London’s terror attack and to appeal for peace in a troubled time.

Sheikh Mohammed Al-Hilli, representing Shia Muslims, and Sunni Sheikh Khalifa Ezzat, head Imam at the London Central Mosque stood alongside the archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby; the chief rabbi, Ephriam Mirvis; and Catholic Cardinal Vincent Nichols at the event.

Al-Hilli expressed his condolences Friday for the four people killed and dozens wounded in the car and knife rampage on Wednesday, saying “we utterly condemn this terrorist act.”

Mirvis played on the theme of unity among people of faith, saying “Londoners are showing right now that we will always stand up with strength to confront terror and we will never be cowed by it.”

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2:50 p.m.

Prince Charles has visited people injured in the London attack, meeting privately with victims at a hospital.

The heir to the British throne thanked staff at King’s College Hospital for their “marvelous efforts.” He shook hands with nurses, who took photos of him as he left the ward.

Charles said: “How you do it, I don’t know.” The hospital has treated eight victims.

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2:30 p.m.

Romania’s embassy in Britain says a Romanian woman wounded during a terrorist attack on Westminster Bridge is showing signs of improvement although she remains in a serious condition.

Romanian officials have not identified the woman, who fell into the Thames River when a SUV plowed into pedestrians on Wednesday, citing privacy regulations.

Friends have identified her as Andreea Cristea, an interior designer, from the Black Sea port of Constanta.

The embassy said Friday any further health updates would need to be approved by her family.

Ambassador to Britain Dan Mihalache said on Thursday she underwent surgery to remove a blood clot from her brain.

The embassy said her boyfriend has been discharged from the hospital.

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2:20 p.m.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has joined other Londoners in leaving floral tributes to honor the police officer killed in the London terror attack.

Khan’s note and flowers were placed outside of New Scotland Yard, the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Force. Khan’s note said: “You will always be in our hearts. Londoners will never forget the innocent people who lost their lives.”

British Transport Police officers from Lambeth, South London left a note that said simply: “For Pc Keith Palmer. HERO. Never forgotten.”

Palmer was stabbed to death by an attacker on Wednesday as he guarded the British Parliament in the heart of London.

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12:10 p.m.

A former British Army officer told the BBC on Friday that rescuers held the hand of Constable Keith Palmer and talked to him as they tried in vain to save his life after he was stabbed during the attack on Parliament.

Mike Crofts, a former Army captain who served in Afghanistan, said he was in the courtyard outside the Houses of Parliament following a meeting with politicians about using boxing to engage young men when the attack took place.

“Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we were unable to save him,” Crofts said. “(Police Constable) Palmer at the time was surrounded by a whole host of colleagues who really loved him. We held his hand through the experience. We talked to him throughout, but unfortunately he passed away.”

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11:30 a.m.

The manager of a hotel where the London attacker stayed the night before he plowed his 4x4 into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and then stabbed a police officer at Parliament says he seemed unusually outgoing and mentioned details about his family, including having a sick father.

“He was normal, in fact friendly, because we spent possibly five or 10 minutes talking to him about his background and where he came from,” Sabeur Toumi told Sky News on Friday.

Police raided the room at the Preston Park Hotel in Brighton after the attack, searching for clues about Khalid Masood, who was identified Friday by his prior name, Adrian Russell Ajao. Toumi said Masood checked in under his own name and mentioned having a couple of children, as well as troubles with an ailing father. Among the items seized were the trouser press and the toilet paper holder.

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10:15 a.m.

He was the perfect British bobby, patiently and politely posing for a photo with a family of tourists from Australia, a wry smile on his face.

Keith Palmer, the policeman stabbed to death in the Westminster attack on Wednesday, left a lasting warm impression on the Thorogoods on that day last October, as he willingly posed with the family for a picture. Parliament, the building that Palmer was guarding when he was murdered, was in the background.

In a post on his Facebook page , Andrew Thorogood recalled how happy Palmer was “to pose with us for a photo once he learned that we had travelled all the way from Alice Springs.”

Describing Palmer as “a genuinely nice bloke,” Thorogood recalled that the officer “said he would love to visit Australia with his family one day.”

Thorogood added that “he was happy to chat and smile for a photo … whilst still remaining vigilant and carrying out his duties as a police officer.”

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8:30 a.m.

London’s top terror officer says Khalid Masood, who attacked Britain’s Parliament, killing four people and wounding some 50, was born Adrian Russell Ajao.

Counter-terror chief Mark Rowley revealed the name in a briefing Friday outside Scotland Yard in which he also said there were two other significant arrests. That brought the total number of people in custody for the Wednesday attack to nine.

The attacker was born in southeastern England and had most recently been living in the central city of Birmingham.

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8:20 a.m.

London’s top anti-terror officer says two more “significant arrests” have been made in connection with the Westminster attack, in central and northern England. Nine people are currently in custody, while one has been released on bail.

Counter-terror chief Mark Rowley on Friday also identified the latest victim, who died in the hospital on Thursday, as 75-year-old Leslie Rhodes from Streatham, south London.

The attacker, identified as Khalid Masood, drove his car into crowds of people on Westminster Bridge on Wednesday afternoon, killing three and wounding some 50, before stabbing a police officer to death at the Houses of Parliament. He was shot dead by police.

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