LONDON, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- A man was charged with terror offence on Thursday after he was arrested near Buckingham Palace in central London armed with a 1.2-meter sword on Aug. 25, leaving three police officers slightly injured, London police said.
The 26-year-old man, Mohiussunnath Choudhury, was accused of "engaging in conduct in preparation for giving effect to his intention to commit an act or acts of terrorism," Scotland Yard said in a statement here.
Choudhury, who is from Luton, some 50 kilometers north of London, drove at police outside Queen Elizabeth II's official residence on Friday evening. He had repeatedly shouted "Allahu Akbar," meaning in Arabic "God is great."
The three police officers suffered minor injuries in a struggle to arrest the sword-brandishing man.
The Buckingham Palace is the London residence and administrative headquarters of the reigning monarch of Britain.
Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality.
The British police on Saturday opened a counterterrorism investigation into the incident, which came as police across Europe are on high alert following a spate of terror attacks this year.
In Britain alone, three attacks claimed the lives of dozens of people, while police in Spain are probing a suspected terrorist network after twin assaults in the country earlier this month.
