Mass stabbing on UK train: 9 suffer life-threatening injuries, 2 suspects arrested

Two men have been arrested following a stabbing incident on a passenger train in Cambridgeshire, England, police in the United Kingdom said Saturday night.

"Armed police from Cambridgeshire Police boarded the train and arrested two people in connection to the incident who have been taken to police custody," police said in a statement.

British Transport Police said 10 people have been taken to hospital, with nine believed to have suffered "life-threatening" injuries.

One person was being treated for non-life threatening injuries, and there were no fatalities, the statement added.

What else do we know about the train stabbing and police response?

Police have declared it a major incident, adding that Counter Terrorism Policing was supporting the investigation to establish the full circumstances and motivation for the suspected attack. 

Chief Superintendent of the British Transport Police, Chris Casey, said it was a "shocking incident" and that his thoughts were with those injured and their families.

"We’re conducting urgent enquiries to establish what has happened, and it could take some time before we are in a position to confirm anything further. At this early stage it would not be appropriate to speculate on the causes of the incident," he added.

The East of England Ambulance Service said they had mobilized a "large-scale response to Huntingdon Railway Station which included numerous ambulances, tactical commanders, our Hazardous Area Response Team."

Critical care teams, including the East Anglian Air Ambulance and Essex and Herts Air Ambulance, were also at the scene.

PM Keir Starmer says train incident 'appalling' and 'deeply concerning'

In a post on X, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the incident was "deeply concerning" and that his thoughts were with those affected. He also thanked emergency services for their response.

British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she was "deeply saddened to hear about the stabbings" and that her "thoughts go out to all those affected."

She urged people to avoid commenting or speculating "at this early stage" of the investigation.

Authorities have not provided information on the suspects' identities or a possible motive.

'Major disruption' on busy train route 

The train involved was the 6.25 p.m. from Doncaster to King's Cross in London, British Transport Police said.

The train operating company that runs most of the passenger train services on the East Coast Main Line, London North Eastern Railway (LNER), said in a post on X that they were "experiencing major disruption" across the LNER route.

"Our advice is 'Do Not Travel'. Please defer your travel where you can," LNER said.

The East Coast Main Line is one of the UK's busiest routes, with trains that connect London with major cities like York, Newcastle, and Edinburgh.