Area around Big Ben closed as man with Palestinian flag climbs Elizabeth Tower

Emergency services have cordoned off the area surrounding Big Ben after a man scaled one of the buildings in the Palace of Westminster.

Video on social media shows a barefoot man stood on a ledge holding a Palestinian flag several metres up Elizabeth Tower, which houses the Westminster clock and its world-famous bell.

At least nine emergency service vehicles lined Bridge Street in central London and crowds looked on from beyond a police cordon.