TERROR SLAUGHTER
Vienna shooting: ISIS gunman kills 4 and wounds 22 in assault rifle terror attack rampage as cops launch raids
AN ISIS gunman armed with an assault rifle and wearing a fake bomb vest was shot dead as four people were killed and 22 wounded in a terrorist rampage in Vienna.
Police have detained 14 people in connection with last night's rampage after the extremist opened fire near a synagogue and busy restaurants at six sites in the Austrian capital.
⚠️ Follow the latest updates on the Vienna shooting here
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The gunman opened fire on drinkers sitting in beer gardens near Vienna’s main synagogue on the Seitenstettengasse last night.
The next hour saw violence and bloodshed as police deployed every cop they could to at least six crime scenes.
Pictures and videos showed running gun battles as bystanders fled screaming from terrorists shooting wildly in the streets.
He was killed by cops within nine minutes of them arriving on the scene.
The sun rose over a shocked Vienna as police attempt to piece together what happened and track down the rest of the attackers.
It is unclear how many attackers were involved, but police have said they are hunting at least one other gunman.
The dead gunman was named as Kujtim Fejzulai, a 20-year-old who was known to domestic intelligence.
Austria's interior minister Karl Nehammer described the dead suspect as an "ISIS sympathiser" and he said the evidence gathered so far shows no indication there was a second attacker.
However, earlier reports suggested there was more than one gunman.
Mr Nehammer said 14 arrests have been made in connection to the attacks.
What we know so far
- The attack was carried out in six locations across Vienna's city centre
- Four dead - two women and two men
- 22 injured - six are fighting for life and a police officer is in stable condition
- One gunman shot dead as interior minister believes there is no indication of another attacker
- Dead gunman named as ISIS supporter Kujtim Fejzulai
- Fejzulai reportedly announced the attack on Instagram and had previously been jailed for trying to go Syria
- Two Turkish MMA fighters carried a woman and an injured cop to safety
Special forces from neighbouring countries were deployed to help in the operation and the suspect's home had been searched and videos had been seized, he said.
Fejzulai is said to have announced the attack on Instagram and pledged allegiance to ISIS leader "The Professor" Abdullah Qardash, reports .
The German newspaper published a picture of the alleged attacker posing with an assault rifle, pistol and machete.
"We experienced an attack yesterday evening from at least one Islamist terrorist," Mr Nehammer said.
"He was equipped with a dummy explosive belt and an automatic long gun, a handgun and a machete to carry out this hideous attack on innocent citizens."
He added the suspect is a dual citizen of Austria and North Macedonia.
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Mr Nehammer said 18 raids and 14 people have been arrested in connection to last night's deadly rampage.
Four civilians - two women and two men - were killed in the violence.
One police officer was critically injured in a shootout with the terrorists, but is now said to be in stable condition.
The victims have been identified as an elderly man and woman, a young passer-by and a waitress.
Six victims of the attack are fighting for their lives in hospital.
Armed police were pictured stopping multiple people are gun point as confusion reigned following the attack.
People in Vienna were urged to stay at home if possible on Tuesday and children did not have to go to school.
Austria's chancellor Sebastian Kurz pledged in a televised address to "hunt down the perpetrators and those who stand behind them".
Three days of mourning have been declared following the attack and all flags on official buildings will fly at half-mast.
ISIS supporters on Tuesday praised the attack on the messaging service Telegram.
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Gunfire erupted just after 8pm local time on Monday - when the city centre was bustling on the last night pubs and cafes were open before a new Covid lockdown starting at midnight.
Disturbing video emerged online apparently showing the moment the first victim was gunned down at random close to the Stadttempel synagogue.
A gunman in light clothing is seen marauding up the cobbled street carrying a long firearm before unleashing a hail of bullets at the young man, who is pinned to a shop window in fear.
The killer jogs past him as he collapses to the ground - then callously turns back and shoots him again with a pistol.
Other footage showed sparks flying as terrorists shot at police in a town square, and a pool of blood between the tables outside a cafe.
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Injured victims were also seen covered in blood as they were treated by emergency crews in pictures shared on social media.
Officers put up road blocks checking all cars and taxis to leaving the city, and security was beefed up at other Jewish sites.
The murders followed outrage at cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed published by satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which has seen a spate of bloodshed in Europe.
Bild also reports one of the jihadis sent a video of the attack on the magazine's offices in 2015 to one of his accomplices.
It comes after in “revenge” for the cartoons of Mohammed.
Fanatics were ordered to carry out an “incendiary campaign” on a sick poster with a photo of French President Emmanuel Macron in the background.
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Amid the violence there was also heroes - with MMA fighters Recep Tayyip Gultekin and Mikail Ozer stepping in to help an injured cop and an elderly woman.
The pair ran in the direction of danger after hearing shots and saw the gunman.
Recep tried to carry an injured woman to safety and ended up getting shot - but initially didn't got to hospital as he "didn't want to be a burden".
He told Turkish news channel : "When I turned around, the terrorist took cover at me, we came eye to eye while shooting, and the moment I met that eye, there was no fear or doubt in me.
"There, with the reflex given to me by my brain, I rolled on the ground and ran, zigzag running and ran downstairs and went to the police building and told about what happened."
Both men then went to the police station to report what happened but then they saw an injured cop - who they carried into a nearby ambulance.
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Meanwhile, the Czech authorities stepped up border checks in an effort to stop the attackers fleeing over the frontier.
It is not clear if the synagogue, the largest in Vienna, was the target of the attack, which was closed at the time.
Rabbi Schlomo Hofmeister said he saw at least gunman fire at people sitting outside bars in the street below his window.
He said: “They were shooting at least 100 rounds just outside our building.
“All these bars have tables outside. This evening is the last evening before the lockdown.
“As of midnight, all bars and restaurants will be closed in Austria for the next month and a lot of people probably wanted to use that evening to be able to go out.”
One witness said a gunman attacked “wildly” using an automatic weapon.
They told Austrian newspaper ORF: “Then you noticed that these were shots.
“Then you saw a person running down the Seitenstetten, [who shot] wildly with an automatic weapon.
"He then turned down, at the 'Roter Engel' from there in the direction of Schwedenplatz.
“He continued to shoot wildly there. Then the police came and fired. "
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Kurz lit a candle of the victims as he attended the scene as floral wreathes were placed near the synagogue.
He said: "The attack yesterday was clearly an Islamic terror attack. This is not a conflict between Christians and Muslims or between Austrians and migrants.
"No, this is a fight between the many people who believe in peace and the few (who oppose it).
"It is a fight between civilisation and barbarism."
Kurz said the army would protect sites in the capital so the police could focus on anti-terror operations.
He described the attackers as "very well equipped with automatic weapons" and had "prepared professionally".
We will never be intimidated by terrorism and we will fight this attack with all means.
Sebastian Kurz
The chancellor added on Twitter: "Our police will act decisively against the perpetrators of this hideous terrorist attack.
"I am glad that our police officers have already been able to eliminate a perpetrator.
"We will never allow ourselves to be intimidated by terrorism and will fight these attacks resolutely by all means."
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Terrified crowds - who had been enjoying a drink on the night before the city's partial Covid lockdown - were shut inside restaurants and the opera house until the area was secured.
Many were reportedly left sitting on the floor in the dark while they wait to be led to safety by cops.
Boris Johnson said he was “deeply shocked” by the attack last night.
He added: “The UK’s thoughts are with the people of Austria - we stand united with you against terror."
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US President Donald Trump tweeted: "These evil attacks against innocent people must stop."
French president Emmanuel Macron said: "We share the shock and grief of the Austrian people struck this evening by an attack in the heart of their capital.
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"This is our Europe. Our enemies must know who they are dealing with. We will not give up."
The bloodbath in Vienna comes after France was hit by two horrifying terror attacks by Islamic extremists with three people murdered in Nice and a school teacher beheaded in Paris.
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