A man who scaled the lower sections of Big Ben's Elizabeth Tower at London's Palace of Westminster early on Saturday has come down after 16 hours and was subsequently arrested.
As per British media, he was waving a Palestinian flag and shouted "free Palestine.”
Confirming the man's arrest, police issued a statement, noting, “The man has now been arrested. This has been a protracted incident due to the specifics of where the man was located and the need to ensure the safety of our officers, the individual and the wider public,” as per The Independent.
It added, “We worked with other agencies including the London Fire Brigade and deployed specialist officers to bring this incident to a close as quickly as possible whilst minimising risk to life.”
“We have been in close liaison with the Parliamentary Estate throughout and all roads have been reopened,” the statement further added.
As per Sky News, a Metropolitan Police spokesperson said they were first informed about the incident at Big Ben's Elizabeth Tower at 07:24 GMT.
Emergency crews used a crane to reach the man and tried to convince him to come down.
He eventually did so after previously telling negotiators that he would come down only when he decided.
As per the reports, emergency services closed Westminster Bridge on Saturday morning due to the incident and parliamentary tours were also canceled.
However, after the man's arrest the police confirmed that all roads had been reopened.
