A man has been arrested in possession of a knife near Buckingham Palace.



A witness said he had seen a man surrounded by officers and handcuffed as he sat on the ground in the Mall at about 10.40am on Wednesday.



A police van arrived with lights flashing and drove him away.



A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan police said the incident was not believed to be terrorism-related.



She added: “A man has been arrested in the Mall, SW1, in possession of a knife. Patrolling officers detained and arrested the man in the Mall at about 10.40am this morning.

“No one was injured in the incident and a knife was recovered. The man has been taken to a central London police station.”