Six teenagers were stabbed in a series of knife crime incidents which took place across London last night, with the youngest victim reported to be a 13-year-old boy.
Police responded to calls to four separate boroughs of the capital, reports Sky News, with the 13-year-old having been attacked in the Little Ilford Park area.
Three teenagers were also admitted to hospital following an attack in Mile End around 6pm. Two of the victims are reported to have been aged 15, and were both in a serious but stale condition.
A male has subsequently been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, while the third victim, aged 16, received treatment for minor injuries before being arrested for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm.
Advert
At 5.30pm, a 15-year-old male had been found stabbed in Poplar, while a male teenager was admitted to hospital with stab wounds following a knife incident in Ealing Broadway around 7pm.
Reports suggest that the number of stabbings in London is now at its highest level since 2010/11.
The incidents come just one day after Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick promised the police force would become 'even more proactive' and 'put even more effort' into tackling the dramatic increase in murder and knife crime currently terrorising the capital.
Promising officers would focus on street dealing, mugging and anti-social behaviour, the Scotland Yard chief said: "We will put even more effort into bearing down on violent crime.
Advert
"You will see us being even more pro-active out on the streets. We will have a greater presence in the hotspots of violence and a focused effort, including intelligence-led stop-and-search and the use of specialists in covert tactics.
"We will be looking to target the people we know are the most dangerous and get the intelligence to our local officers which they can use in a fast-time way.
"We will be encouraging them to not just deal with those people for violent crime, or carrying a knife, but for associated crime, or indeed any crime. If we can get people locked up, if we know they are a prolific knife criminal or a very violent person, then that is all to the good."
Commissioner Dick added that it was 'very, very worrying' to see so many young people injured by groups with 'a real determination to kill'.
Advert
"Some medical people are saying they are seeing more young people with severe injuries and we are seeing more concerted attacks by groups with a real determination to kill and that is very, very worrying," she continued.
"We are seeing far fewer domestic violence murders. Last year there were less than 10, less alcohol-fuelled murders, less murders of older people, in their 30s and upwards.
"However, we are seeing more young people, more group attacks and more knife attacks as a proportion of the whole. All three are worrying, and often they are very violent attacks."
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: UK News, Knife Crime, London