The wife and mother of Westminister attacker Khalid Masood have condemned his actions and offered their condolences to the families of the dead.
Masood’s mother, Janet Ajao, said she had “shed many tears for the people caught up in this horrendous incident” and does “not condone his actions nor support the beliefs he held that led to him committing this atrocity”.
His wife, Rohey Hydara, said she was “saddened and shocked” by his actions and “wished a “speedy recovery” for those still in hospital, while asking for privacy for her children in the wake of the incident.
Masood killed four people in a car and knife attack in London last Wednesday. He killed three people and injured dozens more with his car as he drove at speeds above 70mph (112km/h) along the pavement on Westminster Bridge. After crashing his car, he then killed a PC Keith Palmer outside parliament in a frenzied knife attack, before being shot dead by armed police.
His other victims have been named as teacher Aysha Frade, 44, who worked at a London sixth-form college, US tourist Kurt Cochran, 54, and retired window cleaner Leslie Rhodes, 75, from south London.
Inquests into the four deaths of his victims will be opened on Wednesday, and the inquest into Massood’s death will be opened on Thursday.
Thirteen people remain in hospital form the attack.
The Islamic State claimed it was behind Masood’s attack on the heart of London, but Deputy Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu said investigators had not found any links between Masood and IS or al-Qaeda. However, he did note that Masood “clearly had an interest in jihad”.
In teh wake of the attack, police forces around the UK arrested a number of people on suspicion of aiding Masood. Nine people have since been released without charge, while two people are still being held in Birmingham on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts, and a third person was arrested in Manchester and remains on police bail until late March.
