British lawmaker Jo Cox has been shot and stabbed in her constituency, according to officials and local media, NBC reports.
West Yorkshire Police said armed officers responded to an incident shortly before 1 p.m. in Birstall, not far from the city of Leeds. A woman in her 40s “had suffered serious injuries” and is currently in critical condition, police said in a statement.
A man nearby also was slightly injured and a 52-year-old male has been arrested “in the area,” police added without identifying any of the individuals, the circumstances of the incident or type of injuries.
Both NBC News’ U.K. partner ITV News and the BBC identified the injured woman as Cox, a member of the opposition Labour Party, and said she had been shot and stabbed. A member of the Labour Party confirmed to NBC News that Cox had been shot.
Her husband posted a photo with no caption on Twitter of a smiling Cox along the river where the two have a houseboat.
Cox was scheduled to hold office hours with constituents Thursday at the Birstall Library.
The area was swarming with police in the immediate aftermath of the attack, according to the owner of a restaurant just around the corner of the library.
Eyewitnesses suggested Cox may have been caught up in a scuffle between two men.
“The gun went off twice and then she fell between two cars and I came and saw her bleeding on the floor,” shop owner Hichem Ben Abdallah told ITV News.
Cox — a married mother of two — has been a member of Parliament since 2015. She is a graduate of Cambridge University and worked for international campaign organizations, including Oxfam, prior to entering politics.
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