Six dead in mass stabbing at Sydney shopping center

CNN
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Australian police said a mass stabbing at a busy Sydney shopping mall left six people dead and many others injured, including a nine-month-old baby.

Police were called to Westfield Bondi Junction on Saturday afternoon local time following reports of multiple stabbings. Witnesses described scenes of panic during the attack, with some people forced to hide in shops.

New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webber said four women and one man died at the shopping center and another woman died in hospital.

She said eight people were currently being treated in hospitals around Sydney with varying degrees of injuries, including a nine-month-old baby who was undergoing surgery.

Police said the suspect acted alone and was shot dead on the spot by a lone police officer.

NSW Assistant Commissioner Anthony Cook said a senior police inspector was nearby at the time of the attack.

She was first on the scene and was alone as she fought the attackers. When the criminal raised the knife towards her, she shot him.

“She fired her weapon and that individual is now deceased,” Cook said.

Weber told reporters that the current situation did not indicate a terrorist motive, but said the investigation would last “many days” and that it was “too early to judge” the reasons behind the attack.

Weber said police believe the suspect is a 40-year-old man, but she could not provide further identifying details because a background check is ongoing.

The officer who shot him can also be seen in the video on social media performing CPR on the injured. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called the officer a hero who “undoubtedly saved lives”.

According to police, the suspect encountered nine people after entering the mall at 3:10 pm local time. At 3.20pm he left and re-entered the mall before carrying out the attack.

“confusion”

Videos shared on social media showed shoppers fleeing from multiple exits at the mall as police helicopters could be heard overhead.

CNN’s (CNN) Australian affiliate 9 News Sydney spoke to an eyewitness who described the situation as “chaos” as people ran and fell on each other in the shopping centre.

Two male witnesses told Nine News they saw a baby and mother being stabbed.

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“We were holding the baby and trying to press the baby,” one said. “Like the mother, trying to suppress the blood from stopping.”

Another man described seeing a man in a green shirt stabbing people “indiscriminately”.

“[We just heard] Screaming, screaming, it didn’t seem like long before we heard ‘boom, boom, boom’ of gunfire and we thought, ‘We hope it’s the police’,” a witness told the ABC. “It was just a massacre.”

Prime Minister Albanese said in a televised speech that the attack “beyond words or understanding”.

He continued: “Today there was shocking violence at Bondi Junction. But it was also a testament to the humanity and heroism of our fellow Australians.

“Our brave police officers, our first responders and of course everyday people who never thought they would face a moment like this.”

Mass casualty incidents are rare in Australia. In 2019, a mass shooting occurred in Darwin, northern Australia, leaving at least four people dead and one injured.

In April 1996, a mass shooting occurred in a tourist town in Tasmania, known as the Port Arthur Massacre. It was the deadliest shooting in modern Australian history, leaving 35 people dead.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated