UK Labour MP shot and critically injured, anti-Brexit camp suspends campaigning

A British lawmaker from the opposition Labour Party has been shot and injured in her constituency in northern England, media reported on Thursday.

Jo Cox, 41, a mother of two, was left bleeding on the pavement after the incident in Birstall in Yorkshire, the Press Association cited an eyewitness as saying.

As the debate over the UK's upcoming referendum on remaining in the European Union rages on, the Stronger in Europe campaign declared that it was suspending campaigning because of the attack. Cox is a prominent supporter of the Remain campaign.

A 52-year-old man was arrested, whom the Independent identified as Tommy Mair. A witness told the Guardian that the attacker shouted "Britain First" before the shooting and during the arrest. Witness Clarke Rothwell told the Independent that Cox was shot three times with "an old gun... like a musket" and stabbed with a foot-long knife.

"He was shouting what sounded like `Britain First, Britain First' but then seemed to panic and hurried off," said Rothwell.

Another witness told BBC that he had seen a white man of medium height hitting Cox.

Politicians expressed shock over the attack, including Nigel Farage, chairman of the pro-Brexit UK Independence Party, who wrote on Twitter: "Horrified to hear of the attack on Jo Cox. Wishing her well."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said on Twitter that he was "utterly shocked by the news of the attack on Jo Cox. The thoughts of the whole Labour party are with her and her family at this time".

Before becoming an MP, Cox worked for Oxfam, a confederation of anti-poverty organizations.
 [i24news.tv]
16/6/16
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