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| Police: 1 dead in shooting at Copenhagen free speech event | Police: 1 dead in shooting at Copenhagen free speech event |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| LONDON — A gunman raked a Copenhagen cafe with dozens of bullets Saturday during a free-speech forum, killing a 40-year-old man and injuring three police officers in an attack that survivors said appeared to have been an attempt to mimic last month’s massacre at a satirical newspaper in Paris. | LONDON — A gunman raked a Copenhagen cafe with dozens of bullets Saturday during a free-speech forum, killing a 40-year-old man and injuring three police officers in an attack that survivors said appeared to have been an attempt to mimic last month’s massacre at a satirical newspaper in Paris. |
| The French ambassador to Denmark and a cartoonist — previously targeted for depicting the prophet Muhammad — were among those taking part in the debate who survived the torrent of gunfire. | The French ambassador to Denmark and a cartoonist — previously targeted for depicting the prophet Muhammad — were among those taking part in the debate who survived the torrent of gunfire. |
| “It was the same intention as Charlie Hebdo, except they didn’t manage to get in,” the French ambassador, François Zimeray, told the news service Agence France-Presse, referring to the Jan. 7 attack in Paris. “Intuitively I would say there were at least 50 gunshots, and the police here are saying 200. Bullets went through the doors, and everyone threw themselves to the floor.” | “It was the same intention as Charlie Hebdo, except they didn’t manage to get in,” the French ambassador, François Zimeray, told the news service Agence France-Presse, referring to the Jan. 7 attack in Paris. “Intuitively I would say there were at least 50 gunshots, and the police here are saying 200. Bullets went through the doors, and everyone threw themselves to the floor.” |
| Denmark’s prime minister called the incident a terrorist attack and put the country on high alert Saturday evening. | Denmark’s prime minister called the incident a terrorist attack and put the country on high alert Saturday evening. |
| Late into the night, police were hunting for a lone gunman who fled in a getaway car and who was described as a male in his late 20s wielding an assault rifle. A photo released by Danish authorities shows him wearing a dark-blue ski jacket with a red woolen cap and a matching scarf covering the lower portion of his face. | Late into the night, police were hunting for a lone gunman who fled in a getaway car and who was described as a male in his late 20s wielding an assault rifle. A photo released by Danish authorities shows him wearing a dark-blue ski jacket with a red woolen cap and a matching scarf covering the lower portion of his face. |
| Police in Sweden, separated from Copenhagen by a five-mile-long bridge, also joined the search. | Police in Sweden, separated from Copenhagen by a five-mile-long bridge, also joined the search. |
| Early Sunday, police said that one person was killed and two police officers were wounded in a shooting near a synagogue in downtown Copenhagen, according to the Associated Press. The assailant fled on foot, police said. It was unclear whether this shooting was linked to the earlier attack. | |
| Political leaders from across Europe condemned the attack at the cafe, with French Prime Minister Manuel Valls tweeting, “Freedom attacked in #Copenhagen. Solidarity with the Danes.” | Political leaders from across Europe condemned the attack at the cafe, with French Prime Minister Manuel Valls tweeting, “Freedom attacked in #Copenhagen. Solidarity with the Danes.” |
| The attack was likely to add to already deep apprehensions over terrorism that are being felt across Europe as the continent contends with rising radicalism and a flood of homegrown fighters traveling to and from the battlefields of the Middle East. | The attack was likely to add to already deep apprehensions over terrorism that are being felt across Europe as the continent contends with rising radicalism and a flood of homegrown fighters traveling to and from the battlefields of the Middle East. |
| Security services have said they are overwhelmed by the scale of the threat, with an ever-growing number of possible suspects to surveil and potential targets to protect on a continent unaccustomed to regular bursts of extremist violence in its biggest cities. | Security services have said they are overwhelmed by the scale of the threat, with an ever-growing number of possible suspects to surveil and potential targets to protect on a continent unaccustomed to regular bursts of extremist violence in its biggest cities. |
| The target of Saturday’s earlier attack was a north Copenhagen cafe, the Krudttønden, that is well-known for its jazz performances. On Saturday afternoon it was hosting a community discussion titled “Art, Blasphemy and the Freedom of Expression.” | The target of Saturday’s earlier attack was a north Copenhagen cafe, the Krudttønden, that is well-known for its jazz performances. On Saturday afternoon it was hosting a community discussion titled “Art, Blasphemy and the Freedom of Expression.” |
| Among the organizers was Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, who has received death threats since he drew the prophet Muhammad with the body of a dog in 2007. An al-Qaeda faction placed a bounty on his head, and an American woman calling herself Jihad Jane was sentenced in 2014 to 10 years in prison for plotting to kill Vilks. | Among the organizers was Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks, who has received death threats since he drew the prophet Muhammad with the body of a dog in 2007. An al-Qaeda faction placed a bounty on his head, and an American woman calling herself Jihad Jane was sentenced in 2014 to 10 years in prison for plotting to kill Vilks. |
| In recent years, Vilks, 68, has had constant police protection. | In recent years, Vilks, 68, has had constant police protection. |
| Vilks had security guards with him at the cafe on Saturday and was unharmed in the attack. The French ambassador was also unhurt by the hail of bullets, which left dozens of jagged holes in the cafe’s plate-glass windows. | Vilks had security guards with him at the cafe on Saturday and was unharmed in the attack. The French ambassador was also unhurt by the hail of bullets, which left dozens of jagged holes in the cafe’s plate-glass windows. |
| Police did not immediately release the identity of the man who was killed, who was said to be a civilian. | Police did not immediately release the identity of the man who was killed, who was said to be a civilian. |
| Last month’s attack on Charlie Hebdo, in which editors and cartoonists were among 12 people killed, was believed to have been motivated by the magazine’s depictions of Muhammad. Twenty people in all were killed over three days of violence in Paris, including three assailants, all of whom grew up in France. | Last month’s attack on Charlie Hebdo, in which editors and cartoonists were among 12 people killed, was believed to have been motivated by the magazine’s depictions of Muhammad. Twenty people in all were killed over three days of violence in Paris, including three assailants, all of whom grew up in France. |
| Police said the assailant in the Copenhagen cafe attack spoke Danish. He unleashed his fusillade of gunfire in the middle of the afternoon, with dozens of people gathered to hear Vilks, Zimeray and others discuss the limits of free expression in the age of terrorism. | Police said the assailant in the Copenhagen cafe attack spoke Danish. He unleashed his fusillade of gunfire in the middle of the afternoon, with dozens of people gathered to hear Vilks, Zimeray and others discuss the limits of free expression in the age of terrorism. |
| Inna Shevchenko, an activist with the feminist group Femen, said she was in the middle of a speech, telling the audience that “often it is an illusion that we have freedom of speech in Europe,” according to tweets she later sent. | Inna Shevchenko, an activist with the feminist group Femen, said she was in the middle of a speech, telling the audience that “often it is an illusion that we have freedom of speech in Europe,” according to tweets she later sent. |
| “Then we heard shots.” | “Then we heard shots.” |
| In audio of the moment the gunman struck that was posted online by the BBC, a woman can be heard speaking before she is interrupted by a volley of fire. | In audio of the moment the gunman struck that was posted online by the BBC, a woman can be heard speaking before she is interrupted by a volley of fire. |
| “I realize that every time we talk about the activity of those people there will be always, ‘Yes, it is freedom of speech, but,’ ” the woman says. “And the turning point is ‘but.’ Why do we still say ‘but’ when we . . . ” | “I realize that every time we talk about the activity of those people there will be always, ‘Yes, it is freedom of speech, but,’ ” the woman says. “And the turning point is ‘but.’ Why do we still say ‘but’ when we . . . ” |
| The shots are steady and sustained. From inside the cafe, the sounds are of chairs sliding along the floor as people dive for cover. No one screams. | The shots are steady and sustained. From inside the cafe, the sounds are of chairs sliding along the floor as people dive for cover. No one screams. |
| Survivors of the attack said that police who had been standing guard outside the cafe returned fire. The three injured officers were apparently among those who had been standing guard. | Survivors of the attack said that police who had been standing guard outside the cafe returned fire. The three injured officers were apparently among those who had been standing guard. |
| Inside the cafe, survivors said the reaction was remarkably calm. | Inside the cafe, survivors said the reaction was remarkably calm. |
| “We could not get away, so we continued our discussion,” Helle Merete Brix, one of the organizers, told Denmark’s TV2 News. | “We could not get away, so we continued our discussion,” Helle Merete Brix, one of the organizers, told Denmark’s TV2 News. |
| The attack at Charlie Hebdo has ignited passionate debate across Europe over the right of free expression and whether speech that insults a particular religion or group should be protected. The latest iteration of the debate has roots in Denmark, where in 2005 the newspaper Jyllands-Posten set off a global furor after publishing cartoons of Muhammad, an act that many Muslims consider blasphemous. | The attack at Charlie Hebdo has ignited passionate debate across Europe over the right of free expression and whether speech that insults a particular religion or group should be protected. The latest iteration of the debate has roots in Denmark, where in 2005 the newspaper Jyllands-Posten set off a global furor after publishing cartoons of Muhammad, an act that many Muslims consider blasphemous. |
| Vilks has been an outspoken advocate for free expression. The Lars Vilks Committee, established to support him, gave its 2014 prize to Charlie Hebdo, just three months before the magazine’s staff was massacred. | Vilks has been an outspoken advocate for free expression. The Lars Vilks Committee, established to support him, gave its 2014 prize to Charlie Hebdo, just three months before the magazine’s staff was massacred. |
| Saturday’s event was timed to mark the anniversary of a religious edict against the author Salman Rushdie, who was threatened with death by Islamic extremists and lived in hiding for years after publication of his novel “The Satanic Verses.” | Saturday’s event was timed to mark the anniversary of a religious edict against the author Salman Rushdie, who was threatened with death by Islamic extremists and lived in hiding for years after publication of his novel “The Satanic Verses.” |