New Zealand: 49 dead in mass shootings at Christchurch mosques
Police say 49 people have been killed and dozens injured in shootings at two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch when at least one gunman opened fire on worshippers.
Earlier it was reported that 40 had died but police have given new figures at a news conference.
A man, one of several to be detained, has been charged with murder, police say. One of the massacres was streamed live on social media.
It's the country's worst ever mass shooting and has been condemned internationally.
“This is one of New Zealand’s darkest days,” said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. “Clearly what has happened here is an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence.”
“There is no place in New Zealand for such extreme acts,” she said, describing it as a terrorist attack.
Most of the victims are said to have been killed at the Al Noor mosque, the main mosque in the city on New Zealand's South Island, with several more people killed at a mosque in the suburb of Linwood.
Some 48 people, including children, are being treated at Christchurch hospital, New Zealand health authorities have said. Wounds range from minor to critical, they said.
Reports have suggested that those inside the mosques included refugees and migrants.
Murder charge
Four people – three men and one woman – were taken into custody, police say, but they are not sure if others are involved. The prime minister said they were not on a terror watch-list.
Police say a man in his late twenties has been charged with murder. They have added that they are not looking for further suspects.
Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison has confirmed that one of the suspects was Australian-born.
He described the massacre as a "vicious, murderous attack" on people of faith, carried out by "an extremist, right-wing violent terrorist".
New Zealand police say their Australian colleagues had no information on the suspects.
https://www.euronews.com/2019/03/15/...church-mosques
