Updated | Government condemns Copenhagen attacks, suspect was ‘well known’ to the police

The government has strongly condemned the two deadly attacks that occurred in Copenhagen on Saturday.

Police in Copenhagen said today they  have shot dead a man believed to be behind the two “terrorist” attacks at a café and a synagogue in the Danish capital hours earlier. One person was killed and two were injured during a free speech debate in a café, while hours later, a Jewish man was gunned down and two police officers were injured after a lone gunman opened fire near a synagogue, about 5km from the scene of the first attack.

Police said they shot a man they believed to be the perpetrator of the attacks when he opened fire on them first at an address that was under surveillance following the earlier twin shootings. The man, who has not been named yet, has since been described as a “well known suspect to the police,” and is believed to be the culprit behind both incidents.

Jens Madsen, the head of the country’s security service, said the killed may have been “inspired by militant Islamist propaganda issued by IS [Islamic State] and other terror organisations”, but it was not yet known whether he had travelled to Iraq or Syria before the attacks.

The suspect was from Copenhagen, and is believed to be the only one to have carried out the attacks. The killings began at about 3:30pm on Saturday, when a man attacked a café during a free speech debate featuring the controversial Swedish artist Lars Vilk, who had depicted the prophet Muhammad in cartoons. Finn Norgaard, 55, a film director attending the event, was named as the victim.

Meanwhile, hours later, at about 1am, 37-year-old Dan Uzan was killed while guarding a synagogue while a confirmation ceremony was taking place inside.

A city-wide lockdown and a massive search began shortly after the attacks and at about 3am, police spotted the suspect near a train station in the multicultural inner-city neighbourhood of Noerrebro where police had been keeping an address under observation since the cafe attack.

Chief Police Inspector Torben Molgaard Jensen said that after calling him out, the suspect opened fire against police and was thereafter shot.

Condemning the attacks, foreign affairs minister George Vella extended his support to eh Danish government and underlined Malta’s solidarity with the people of Denmark during these difficult moments.

Vella also reiterated that the government categorically condemns all acts of terror, irrespective of who the perpetrators are. He added that the international community should look beyond these heinous acts and continue to work towards closer inter-cultural and inter-religious dialogue. This, he added, is the most effective and unequivocal response that the global community could give to those behind the attacks.

Minister Vella also said that the nature of the attacks came as a further shocking development on European territory and constituted a threat against all those who embraced freedom and tolerance.