Terror attack in New York, injured attacker in custody

New York [U.S.A.] Dec 11 (ANI): The explosion near Times Square on Monday morning was a terror attack in which the attacker has been taken into custody in injured condition, said authorities.

The explosion took place in Midtown at an intersection near the Port Authority Bus Terminal on Monday morning.

The Port Authority Bus Terminal, which bills itself as the world's busiest bus terminal, also is not far from Times Square.

The police have confirmed that apart from the suspect, three other people have suffered non- life-threatening injuries. The residents have also been advised to avoid the area.

"This was an attempted terrorist attack, "CNN quoted New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio as saying.

James P. O'Neill, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department, said, "The suspect is a 27-year-old male who strapped an 'improvised low-tech explosive device' to his body. He suffered burns and other wounds and is currently in the hospital."

He appealed the citizens: "If you have any information on this individual or incident we ask you call the Terror Hotline at 888-NYC-SAFE."

The CNN quoted New York Governor Andrew Cuomo as saying that the suspect had an "effectively low-tech device" on him this morning at Port Authority.

The Governor is at the scene and the law enforcement agencies have briefed him about the incident.

President Donald Trump has been briefed on the explosion in New York City, said White House press secretary Sarah Sanders.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said there are "no credible and specific threats against New York at this time" but added that there will be an increased police presence across New York today.

An eyewitness Francisco Ramirez told CNN that he heard two explosions as he was exiting a bus about 7:45 a.m. ET, even though he was wearing headphones.

"From what I saw it sounded like it came from the subway, but I'm just guessing," he said. "It was two distinct explosions seconds from each other. As I was making my way toward the outside, I kept getting shoved by cops and there were cops at every entrance blocking and there was police and SWAT everywhere. It was scary. It was just a lot of chaos but I didn't see any injuries," Ramirez told CNN.

Earlier, the New York Police Department had confirmed the news of explosion on Twitter.

"The NYPD is responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, #Manhattan. The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time. Info is preliminary, more when available," it tweeted.

The NYPD is responding to reports of an explosion of unknown origin at 42nd Street and 8th Ave, #Manhattan. The A, C and E line are being evacuated at this time. Info is preliminary, more when available. pic.twitter.com/7vpNT97iLC

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 11, 2017

Aerial footage from the scene showed police cruisers, emergency vehicles and hundreds of police and fire personnel in the street outside the terminal.

Further details are awaited. (ANI)