British airport to reopen after terror scare

BRITISH police said Luton Airport would re-open after they carried out a controlled explosion of a suspicious item which forced the airport to be evacuated on Monday.

Passengers wait outside Luton airport after the evacuation. Picture: AFP

All flights to the airport 35 miles north of London, the country’s sixth biggest, were suspended and roads leading to the airport were closed, after concerns were raised about the item when it went through the a security search.

Bomb disposal experts were called in and a controlled explosion was carried out.

“It was confirmed that the item destroyed, although deemed suspicious, did not present a wider danger,” Bedfordshire Police said on its website. Police said no one had been arrested.

Britain recently raised its international terrorism alert to its second-highest level, saying Islamic State in Syria and Iraq posed the country’s greatest-ever security risk.