Police are searching for at least one suspect after a multiple gun attack in the Austrian capital, Vienna, that killed four people.
Seventeen other people were wounded – some seriously – after gunmen opened fire at six different locations in Vienna center on November 2.
According to officials, one attacker was shot dead by police.
Interior Minister Karl Nehammer described the assailant killed by police as an “Islamist terrorist”.
Two of those who died in the shooting were women and two were men. One of the women was reportedly a waitress. The second woman died of her wounds in hospital overnight, reports said.
The victims were in a city center area busy with people in bars and restaurants, near Vienna’s central synagogue, but it is not yet clear if that was the target.
The interior minister advised people to stay away from the center, as police cordoned off some streets and brought in reinforcements. Parents were told to keep their children home on November 3 if they could.
Seven of the wounded have life-threatening injuries, Austrian media report.
Addressing a news conference, Karl Nehammer described the heavily armed gunman killed by police as an ISIS sympathizer. His home had been searched and video material seized, the minister said. He had been wearing a fake explosive belt, police tweeted.
Earlier, the interior minister said at least one “heavily armed and dangerous” attacker was believed to be still at large. Officials were quoted as saying there could have been as many as four attackers.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz called it a “repulsive terror attack”. The government called it “an attack on freedom and democracy”.
The attack came hours before Austria imposed new national restrictions to try to stem rising cases of coronavirus. Many people were enjoying drinks and eating out before a midnight curfew.
The government has announced three days of national mourning, starting immediately, with flags to fly at half-mast and a minute’s silence at midday. Schools will also have a minute’s silence for the victims on Wednesday morning.
European leaders strongly condemned the shooting.
The Vienna shooting comes after a spate of Islamist attacks in France.
Police in the neighboring Czech Republic said they were carrying out random checks on the border with Austria in case the gunman fled in that direction.
A large-scale police operation is under way in Vienna following a shooting incident in the Austrian capital.
According to police, several people have been injured in the shooting.
However, state broadcaster ORF TV is reporting that several people were killed.
The interior minister described the incident as a “terror attack” and said that one attacker had been killed.
Another attacker was “on the run” in the Austrian capital after the shooting.
Police have urged people to avoid all public spaces in the area and not to take public transport.
Road blocks have been set up around the city center. Footage posted on social media showed people running as what was reported to be gunshots could be heard.
The shooting took place in the center of the city, hours before the midnight start of a nationwide lockdown, one of several being imposed in Europe to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
The area where the shooting took place is packed with bars and Vienna’s main temple, the Seitenstettengasse synagogue, but it was not clear if they had any connection to the violence.
Jewish community leader Oskar Deutsch tweeted that it was unclear if the Vienna synagogue was targeted in the attack as it was closed at the time.
A man has killed three people and injured other 34 after driving his van into crowds before getting out and stabbing bystanders in Austria’s second largest city of Graz.
The driver has been arrested, though police say there were no indications the attack was motivated by terrorism.
The horrific scene took place at 12:30 today and police have allegedly arrested a 26-year-old man who they claim has Bosnian roots.
Part of the city was sealed off, with large numbers of ambulances and helicopters sent to the scene.
Local media has reported that after driving the SUV into the crowd, seemingly targeting people at random.
After the vehicle stopped the man left it and used a knife to attack several people.
The man, who reportedly hit a cyclist before his car went into the crowd, acted alone according to police.
The square in Graz was hosting an event related to the Austrian Formula 1 Grand Prix, which is being held nearby.
The regional governor confirmed that three people had died and 34 were injured, some seriously.
Hermann Schuetzenhoefer told reporters that the suspect was a 26-year-old man who was “mentally unbalanced”.
“There is no explanation, there is no excuse,” he added.
Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann also said he was deeply shocked by the incident.
Sixty ambulances and four helicopters were sent to the scene.
Graz Mayor Siegfried Nagl, who witnessed the incident, told Kleine Zeitung newspaper: “The driver deliberately drove into pedestrians. I myself saw a woman being run over.”
The Austrian Grand Prix takes place this weekend in Spielberg, and it is thought that many of the city’s emergency services had been deployed there.
Graz mayor has cancelled all city events in the city and ordered black flags of mourning to be raised above municipal buildings, AP reports.
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