British soldier was stabbed '12 times with 10-inch knife' in 20-second rampage outside Kent barracks in broad daylight is captured on doorbell camera

Police say rampage is NOT being treated as terror attack and may be mental health-related

Horrifying doorbell footage has captured the moment a woman screamed for help as a British soldier was stabbed up to 12 times with a 10inch knife in broad daylight.

The victim, in his 40s, was attacked shortly before 6pm on Tuesday evening in a 20-second rampage around 200 yards from Brompton Barracks in Gillingham, Kent. Witnesses say he was assaulted by a moped-riding man in a ski mask and a NASA bomber jacket.

Ring doorbell footage from local resident Alex Reynolds captures a woman screaming hysterically, shouting 'what the f*** are you doing?', 'F****** hell' and 'Somebody call 999'.

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The attack is not being treated as an act of terror, with police instead saying they are 'exploring the possibility it may be mental health-related'.

The attacker was reportedly armed with two 10inch kitchen knives and stabbed the man repeatedly in an attack lasting 20 seconds. Locals described hearing 'blood-curdling screams' during the savage assault.

The soldier then attempted to stagger back to his house despite his injuries as the assailant carried out a second attack. He was only stopped when the soldier's wife intervened; she was not harmed as she begged for help from nearby squaddies.

Police arrested a 24-year-old local man within half an hour of the incident and a 'number of knives' were seized. The soldier was airlifted to hospital, where he remains in a serious but stable condition.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was 'shocked and appalled' by the attack.

He later told PMQs: 'I know the whole House will be shocked by the news that a soldier has been attacked in Kent. Our thoughts are with him, his family and our armed forces who serve to keep us safe.

'We wish him a swift recovery.'

Leader of the opposition Rishi Sunak added: 'Can I join with the Prime Minister in expressing my shock at an attack on a British soldier...our thoughts are with him and his family, as we wish him a speedy recovery.'

Home secretary Yvette Cooper said she was receiving updates from Kent Police, which said this morning that a man remains in custody.

Chief of General Staff, General Sir Roly Walker, said he is 'deeply saddened' by the 'horrific' and 'unprovoked' assault while shadow home secretary James Cleverly expressed his gratitude to police for their 'swift action (in) arresting the suspect'.

Sir Roly confirmed the man was an officer in the Army, adding: 'My thoughts and best wishes are with him and his family. They have the full support of the chain of command as they recover from this horrendous incident.

Acting Chief Superintendent Richard Woolley of Kent Police said: 'This was an upsetting incident for all concerned and our best wishes go to the victim, his family and those who witnessed the incident.

'Residents will experience an increased police presence in the Gillingham area and I would like to reassure everyone that officers responded quickly to take a man into custody and we do not currently believe anyone else was involved.

'The motivation for the attack is currently unknown and forms part of our ongoing enquiries, although we are exploring the possibility that it may be mental health-related. We are also investigating any possible links between the location and the suspect.

'There is no further information at this time to suggest there are any wider threats to the local community including members of the armed forces.'

Police have arrested a 24-year-old man, described as a 'local', on suspicion of attempted murder. Ministry of Defence sources say it is too soon to deduce any motivating factors behind the attack.

Security sources have said terrorism has been downplayed as a reason for the attack - adding that electronic devices belonging to the suspect had yet to be examined.

However, the attack has echoes of the 2013 murder of Fusilier Lee Rigby, who was stabbed to death by two Islamist jihadi terrorists near his barracks in south London.

Witnesses to the Gillingham attack say the knifeman held up one of the bloodied weapons and licked it in front of terrified locals who had rushed out of their homes to help the serviceman.

Horrified onlookers had been alerted to the attack after hearing screams on Sally Port Gardens, a quiet residential street that is believed to be home to some military families.

Neighbour Alex Reynolds, 38, who works as a commodities analyst, said: 'We had my father in the house and we heard the screaming.

'At first, we thought it was a scuffle in the street. But you could then hear the piercing shrieks of the voices and you realise that it was something much more.

'Seconds later I walked out into the road and I can see 10 people around a body which wasn't moving.

'The victim was wearing military uniform as many people around here do.' He later added the uniform was 'cream camouflage' in colour.

It was Mr Reynold's Ring doorbell that captured the screams of a woman yelling during the attack.

He added: 'I spoke to someone who worked with him and he said he always walked out at that time of the night.

'His wife was running around screaming asking for help. She seemed in good health considering the situation - she seemed fit enough to ask people for help.

'She was directing traffic onto the pavement to get to her husband.'

A woman who lives nearby told today how she saw the 'dead-eyed' attacker riding slowly away moments after stabbing a soldier.

The shaken eye-witness, who declined to be named, said: 'There was a lot of car horns and men shouting. At first I thought there'd been some sort of accident or road-rage incident.

'But then I heard a woman screaming 'no, no, no, stop'. That's when I knew something more serious had happened.

'I looked over to where the commotion was and I saw the woman running somewhere. Shortly afterwards a man rode down the road slowly past me on a motorbike. He had a crash helmet on but I could see his face.

'He had a calm, glazed, dead-behind-the eyes look. He wasn't sweating, didn't look worried and wasn't rushing, it seemed to me.'

'Another woman who saw what happened called the police and I heard her saying, 'He's just stabbed a man and his riding off, you need to get here straight away.'

'I saw the wife of the victim again and she was asking the doctors on the corner for first aid equipment. She told them her husband had just been stabbed.

'A military patrol vehicle was on the scene almost immediately and police and ambulance were here a moment of two later.

'This has shocked us all, It's horrible and frightening to think something like this could happen in the area.'

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