Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command officers have been given seven more days to question six female terror suspects arrested over the last few weeks in London and Kent area of south-east England.
All six were arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of terrorist acts and detained under Section 41 of the Terrorism Act 2000.
Warrants of further detention, for up to seven more days, were granted yesterday at Westminster Magistrates' Court in respect of all six women whilst enquiries continue, a Metropolitan Police statement said.
A 21-year-old woman was arrested in hospital after being shot when officers fired laughing gas through the windows of a flat in north-west London and stormed the property.
A second woman, 20, was arrested at the flat and a 43- year-old woman was arrested in Kent. Subsequent raids led to the arrests of three teenage women, aged 18 or 19, in east London.
Meanwhile, three men arrested during raids by heavily armed counter-terrorism officers as part of the same operation have been released without charge.
"Officers have now completed the searches of all the addresses connected with the arrests," the Met said.
The news came as officers from the Met's Counter Terrorism Command (SO15) arrested a 30-year-old man at London's Heathrow Airport as he disembarked a flight from Istanbul, Turkey, yesterday.
"The man has been arrested on suspicion for preparing for terrorist acts and terrorist training contrary to Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006. He has been taken to a south London police station, where he is detained under the Police and Criminal Evidence (PACE)," the Met said.
The Met Police has conducted a series of raids and arrests in the last few weeks, including the arrest of a 27- year-old man carrying knives near the Houses of Parliament in London last week.
Britain's security services have reportedly identified 350 people who have returned to Britain from Syria and pose a potential terrorist threat.
British police anti-terrorism activity has been on high alert, with 260 arrests in 2016 and 183 people in prison for terrorism offences at the end of the last year.
More than 19,000 people were subjected to anti-terrorism security checks at ports and airports during 2016, according to latest figures.
This anti-terror activity has been further intensified since the March 22 attack on Parliament in London by Khalid Masood, which claimed four innocent lives.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
