Vienna synagogue shooting: 7 dead, more injured in ‘suicide attack’
‘Seven dead’ and many injured in Austrian terror rampage: Huge manhunt underway as ‘several’ attackers hit synagogue, restaurants and hotel with ‘hostages taken’ and ‘suicide bomb detonated’
- Several people are thought to have been killed in shooting rampage in Vienna
- Police are urging people to avoid public transport and the Vienna city centre
- There are also reports that the gunman’s accomplice ‘blew themselves up’
At least seven people are thought to have been killed with several others injured in a suspected gun and suicide attack near a synagogue in Vienna.
The incident is currently ongoing with a huge manhunt underway for several attackers and hostages also reportedly being held at a restaurant near the scene.
One attacker is thought to have ‘blown themselves up’ during the rampage.
Kronen Zeitung, Austria’s largest newspaper, is reporting the incident as a terror attack, with a police officer said to have been shot and left in a critical condition.
At the same time, hostages are reportedly being held at Akakiko restaurant on Mariahilfer Strauss following shooting.
Shocking social media footage shows a man carrying an assault rifle sprinting through the streets and firing off shots, though it is unclear if he is the gunman behind the attack.
Though Vienna police have yet to officially confirm the nature of the incident, they are ordering the public to stay away from the city centre and public transport.
Oskar Deutsch, the head of the Jewish community in Vienna, said the shooting took place in the street where the city’s main synagogue is located but that it wasn’t clear whether the house of worship had been targeted.
The synagogue was already closed at the time of the shooting, Deutsch tweeted. A neighbouring restaurant was also closed.
A man carrying an assault rifle and believed to be the gunman who carried out the rampage in Vienna on Monday evening
Although yet to be confirmed, this is thought to be a photo taken near the scene of where the shots rang out
An Austrian policeman overlooks an area in Vienna after a shooting in the city centre. Multiple gunshots were fired in central Vienna on Monday evening, police said, while media reported that there had been an attack close to a synagogue
Police block a street near Schwedenplatz square after a shooting in Vienna, Austria this evening, with at least one person dead
Other footage believed to be taken near the scene showing people ducking and weaving as they run for cover, with shots ringing out.
One attacker was ‘dead’ and another ‘on the run’, while one police officer had been seriously injured, Austria’s interior ministry said according to news agency APA
Austrian journalist Thomas Mayar, citing the Ministry of the Interior, said: ‘One dead and several injured in an attack on the synagogue in Seitenstettengasse in the center of Vienna, says the Ministry of the Interior. Large-scale police operation.
‘Stay in the houses. Shots on Schwedenplatz.’
Austrian public broadcaster ORF cited witnesses saying several shots were fired shortly after 7pm.
Armed police officers walk through the streets of Vienna after this evening’s attack, with a manhunt said to be underway
Shocking footage believed to be taken near the scene showing people ducking and weaving as they run for cover, with shots ringing out
Another Austrian newspaper reported that the attack was on the street that houses the city’s main synagogue.
Vienna Police tweeted: ‘Around #InnnerenStadt there were several exchanges of fire. There are several injured people. We are on duty with all possible forces. Please avoid all public places in the city.’
More to follow
