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Finland police shoot man after multiple stabbings in city of Turku Finland police shoot man after several people stabbed in city of Turku
(35 minutes later)
Finnish police have shot and arrested a man who stabbed several people in a market square in the south-west city of Turku. Several people have been stabbed in a knife attack in a market square in the south-west city Finnish city of Turku.
At least one person was seen lying on the ground at Turku’s Puutori market square and others were reported to be hurt, according to YLE Uutiset, the main news programme of Finland’s public broadcaster. Police shot and arrested a man after the attack, and said they were hunting other possible attackers. They warned people to stay away from the city as they reinforced security nationwide.
The Turun Sanomat newspaper reported that at least one person was killed in the attack on Friday and that police were inspecting departing trains and buses. At least one person was seen lying on the ground at Turku’s Puutori market square on Friday afternoon and others were reported to be hurt, according to YLE Uutiset, the main news programme of Finland’s public broadcaster.
There were four or five ambulances near the city’s main square, the paper reported a witness as saying. The Turun Sanomat newspaper reported that at least one person had been killed. The Helsingin Sanomat newspaper said eight people had been taken to hospital, and some of them were in critical condition. There were four or five ambulances near the city’s main square, the paper reported a witness as saying.
Police said several people had been stabbed and asked the public to avoid the area. A suspected assailant has been shot in the leg and detained.
Finnish police have reinforced security at Helsinki airport and train stations after the stabbings.
At about 4:40 pm, south-west Finland police tweeted: “Several people stabbed in central Turku. People are requested to avoid the city centre.”At about 4:40 pm, south-west Finland police tweeted: “Several people stabbed in central Turku. People are requested to avoid the city centre.”
Witness Laura Laine told YLE that she stood approximately 20 meters (65ft) from where the stabbing took place. “We heard that a young woman was screaming. We saw a man on the square and a knife glittered,” Laine was quoted as saying. “He was waving it in the air. I understood that he had stabbed someone.”
Paula Risikko, the interior minister, said she did not yet know whether the attack was related to terrorism. Finland is traditionally peaceful but the Finnish security intelligence service raised the terrorism threat level in June, saying it had become aware of more serious terrorism-related plans.
In April, an Uzbek man killed four people in neighbouring Sweden by driving a hijacked lorry into a crowd in central Stockholm.
Finland’s prime minister, Juha Sipilä, tweeted: “The government is closely following the events in Turku and the ongoing police operation. The government will meet later today.”Finland’s prime minister, Juha Sipilä, tweeted: “The government is closely following the events in Turku and the ongoing police operation. The government will meet later today.”
More details soon … In 2012, Finland’s then-prime minister Jyrki Katainen escaped a knife attack in Turku while campaigning for municipal elections. The man who approached him carrying a knife was found to be psychologically disturbed and no charges were brought against him.
A former capital of Finland, Turku remains a hub for business and culture.
Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report