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British police have arrested a man after a van was driven into a late-night crowd near a mosque in north London.
Authorities said "a number of casualties" were being treated at the scene outside the Muslim Welfare House near a mosque on the Seven Sisters Road in Finsbury Park. Police said they were dealing with a "major incident".
"The leader of the mosque will release a statement later but right now safety is our concern. Thank you guys for the support," Muslim Welfare House wrote on Twitter.
The BBC quoted a witness as saying at least three people were seriously injured.
Footage posted on social media showed people lying on the pavement being given CPR, and a man with dark curly hair being led away by police.
A statement from London's Metropolitan Police confirmed one man had been arrested.
"We have sent a number of ambulance crews, advance paramedics and specialist response teams to the scene," the London Ambulance Service said in a statement.
"Our priority is to assess the level and nature of injuries and ensure those in the most need are treated first and taken to hospital."
Police said they were called to the scene just after 00:20am (9:20am AEST) to "reports of a vehicle in collision with pedestrians".
Reports said the van drove into people who were leaving Ramadan prayers at the Finsbury Park Mosque.
"We have been informed that a van has run over worshippers as they left #FinsburyPark Mosque. Our prayers are with the victims," the Muslim Council of Britain said on Twitter.
It later updated the location: "UPDATE: the attack took place outside @MWH_London which is nearby the #FinsburyPark mosque, not outside Finsbury Park mosque itself."
The Twitter handle @MWH_London is used by the Muslim Welfare House, a local community organisation.
"I saw at least two people being attended to on the ground. Shortly after police cordoned the area," said BBC producer Abdirahim Saeed, who was tweeting from the scene.
"People here say the attacker(s) probably thought the place was a mosque and people just leaving late Ramadan prayers."
The Finsbury Park Mosque was associated with extremist ideology for several years after the 9/11 attacks in the United States but was shut down and reorganised. It has not been associated with radical views for more than a decade.
Earlier this month, a van veered into pedestrians on London Bridge, setting off vehicle and knife attacks that killed eight people and wounded many others on the bridge and in the nearby Borough Market area.
The three terrorists who carried out that attack were killed by police.
First posted