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Forty-nine people have died in the mass shooting at two mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch on Friday, 15 March, New Zealand Police Commissioner Mike Bush confirmed. He also said that at least 20 people are seriously injured in the terror attack.
Addressing the media, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the events in Christchurch represented “an extraordinary and unprecedented act of violence” and acknowledged many of those affected may be migrants and refugees.
The police has arrested four people, including one woman. They have further defused a number of improvised explosive devices found on vehicles after the mosque shootings.
Follow live updates of the incident here.
Authorities have not elaborated on who they detained. But a man who claimed responsibility for the shootings left a 74-page anti-immigrant manifesto in which he explained who he was and his reasoning for his actions.
He said he was a 28-year-old white Australian.
One Arrested Identified as an Australian Citizen
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed that one of the four people arrested was an Australian-born citizen.
Ardern at a news conference alluded to anti-immigrant sentiment as the possible motive, saying that while many people affected by the shootings may be migrants or refugees “they have chosen to make New Zealand their home, and it is their home. They are us. The person who has perpetuated this violence against us is not.”
The man who claimed responsibility for the shooting said he came to New Zealand only to plan and train for the attack, reported AP.
He said he was not a member of any organisation, but had donated to and interacted with many nationalist groups, though he acted alone and no group ordered the attack.
He said the mosques in Christchurch and Linwood would be the targets, as would a third mosque in the town of Ashburton if he could make it there.
He said he chose New Zealand because of its location, to show that even the most remote parts of the world were not free of “mass immigration.”
Bangladesh Cricketers Escape Mosque Shooting
The Bangladesh team, which was about to enter the mosque to offer prayers, escaped unscathed but the prevailing situation led to the authorities calling off the third and final Test match, which is scheduled to be played at the Hagley Oval starting 16 March.
“All members of the Bangladesh Cricket Team in Christchurch, New Zealand are safely back in the hotel following the incident of shooting in the city. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is in constant contact with the players and team management,” the BCB said in a statement on its Twitter page.
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