A gunman has reportedly opened fire in the Christchurch Mosque near Hagley Park.
The former president of the Muslim Association of Canterbury Mohammed Jama said a man with a gun went into the mosque about 1.40pm on Friday.
He saw about four people injured and two people lying on the ground. He did not know if they were alive or dead.
A Stuff photographer said he could see three seriously injured people on the doorstep of the mosque.
In a statement, police said they were responding to reports of shots fired in central Christchurch.
Police urged anyone in central Christchurch to stay indoors and report any suspicious behaviour immediately to 111.
Source.
This is an evolving situation so I'll try and keep things updated.
But this very much a "what the actual fuck" situation, because nothing like this has ever happened here. Yes, there have been mass shootings, but these were not what appears to be targeted against a specific group of people. This comes on the back of an attack on the Green Party who was attacked yesterday by a man screaming about the UN. At the moment there's no reports of fatalities but this is likely to change given there were a number of people praying in the mosque at the time.
So, NSG, join with me in saying what the actual fuck as well as hoping that no one has lost their lives in this attack.
Edit: Here is a live feed regarding the incident.
Edit 2.1: Here's what we know:
- 49 people have confirmed to have been killed at two mosques in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. At least that number again have been injured.
- Only one person is believed to have been responsible for the attacks, two others are still in custody.
- One of the shooters has been confirmed as an Australian national.
- One person has been charged with murder.