Mail Online :
Up to five people are believed to have been killed in a terrorist attack when a stolen truck rammed into shoppers in Stockholm before running through the city centre shooting at pedestrians.
Three men were reported to have jumped out of the truck and opened fire.
Police said the vehicle crashed into a group of people on the street outside a shopping centre after racing down six streets. Hundreds of shoppers were seen fleeing for their lives after the articulated truck rammed into the corner of the building.
Dozens were believed to have been injured.
The driver, who was said by witnesses to be wearing a balaclava, is thought to have been arrested. The incident took place at Ahlens, a department store in Klarabergsgatan. Armed men were then seen running into Stockholm’s Central railway station and opening fire. Police shut the station down.
The truck is understood to have been stolen or hijacked from a Spendrups brewery. Extinguisher was seen being sprayed on to the vehicle. Prime Minister Stefan Löfven said everything pointed to the incident being a terror attack and confirmed one person has been arrested. Armed police were scrambled to the scene and were seen marching into the store. A Swedish radio reporter said she had seen at least five dead bodies, Aftonbladet reported. Swedish police confirmed three have been killed and eight injured.
Witnesses described seeing a ‘lone man’ put a balaclava over his face before he drove the drunk into crowds of people.
All public transport in the city is on lock down with train services connecting Stockholm Central Station and the underground being stopped.
Ulf Andersson, who is Stockholm, said the police are ‘really scared’ and urging locals to move from central parts of the busy city. He said: ‘The police are really, really scared. They are telling people to move from the central parts of the city and not to walk in groups.’
Dan Horning lives on the busy ‘main walking street’ where the attack took place and said the death toll could be ‘enormous’ because it’s always so busy.
He was not inside his home at the time but said the articulated lorry would have raced down ‘about six blocks’ before it ‘hit a lot of people’.
Mr Horning said: ‘My door was right where the terror attack started. Somebody drove a truck down my street in Stockholm – about six blocks – and hit a lot of people.
‘It is a main walking street in the centre of Stockholm and was filled with people. We don’t know the death toll yet, but it could be enormous.’ Anna who witnessed the incident, said: ‘I saw hundreds of people ran, they ran for their lives.
‘I turned and ran as well.’
Eyewitness Jan Granroth was inside a shoe shop when he heard screams.
He told Swedish daily paper Aftonbladet: ‘We stood inside a shoe store and people started screaming.
‘So I looked out of the store and I saw a huge truck slam into the wall opposite.’ Mr Granroth managed to escape after running through an emergency exit.
Another witness, called Dimitris, described the panic and saw ‘at least’ two people being run over.
He said: I went to the main street when a big truck came out of nowhere. I could not see if anyone was driving it but it got out of control.
‘I saw at least two being run over – I ran as fast as I could.’
A woman, called Anna, witnessed the incident and described seeing ‘hundreds of people running for their lives’.
She said: ‘I turned and ran after seeing hundreds of people running, they ran for their lives.’
Shocking video footage showed hundreds of terrified shoppers sprint for their lives after the truck rammed into pedestrians. Just moments after the suspected terrorist incident, armed police wearing gas masks quickly rushed to the scene and shut off the busy road in the centre of the capital.
Maria Nathalie was on the top floor of the store when the fire alarm was triggered.
Speaking on the phone, she told NBC: ‘People started running down the stairs when the fire alarm started.
‘When we came down to the bottom of the building all we could see was a lot of smoke.’
This comes after trucks were used in terror attacks in Nice and Berlin last year. A car was also used to kill pedestrians in the Westminster Bridge two weeks ago which killed five people.
Up to five people are believed to have been killed in a terrorist attack when a stolen truck rammed into shoppers in Stockholm before running through the city centre shooting at pedestrians.
Three men were reported to have jumped out of the truck and opened fire.
Police said the vehicle crashed into a group of people on the street outside a shopping centre after racing down six streets. Hundreds of shoppers were seen fleeing for their lives after the articulated truck rammed into the corner of the building.
Dozens were believed to have been injured.
The driver, who was said by witnesses to be wearing a balaclava, is thought to have been arrested. The incident took place at Ahlens, a department store in Klarabergsgatan. Armed men were then seen running into Stockholm’s Central railway station and opening fire. Police shut the station down.
The truck is understood to have been stolen or hijacked from a Spendrups brewery. Extinguisher was seen being sprayed on to the vehicle. Prime Minister Stefan Löfven said everything pointed to the incident being a terror attack and confirmed one person has been arrested. Armed police were scrambled to the scene and were seen marching into the store. A Swedish radio reporter said she had seen at least five dead bodies, Aftonbladet reported. Swedish police confirmed three have been killed and eight injured.
Witnesses described seeing a ‘lone man’ put a balaclava over his face before he drove the drunk into crowds of people.
All public transport in the city is on lock down with train services connecting Stockholm Central Station and the underground being stopped.
Ulf Andersson, who is Stockholm, said the police are ‘really scared’ and urging locals to move from central parts of the busy city. He said: ‘The police are really, really scared. They are telling people to move from the central parts of the city and not to walk in groups.’
Dan Horning lives on the busy ‘main walking street’ where the attack took place and said the death toll could be ‘enormous’ because it’s always so busy.
He was not inside his home at the time but said the articulated lorry would have raced down ‘about six blocks’ before it ‘hit a lot of people’.
Mr Horning said: ‘My door was right where the terror attack started. Somebody drove a truck down my street in Stockholm – about six blocks – and hit a lot of people.
‘It is a main walking street in the centre of Stockholm and was filled with people. We don’t know the death toll yet, but it could be enormous.’ Anna who witnessed the incident, said: ‘I saw hundreds of people ran, they ran for their lives.
‘I turned and ran as well.’
Eyewitness Jan Granroth was inside a shoe shop when he heard screams.
He told Swedish daily paper Aftonbladet: ‘We stood inside a shoe store and people started screaming.
‘So I looked out of the store and I saw a huge truck slam into the wall opposite.’ Mr Granroth managed to escape after running through an emergency exit.
Another witness, called Dimitris, described the panic and saw ‘at least’ two people being run over.
He said: I went to the main street when a big truck came out of nowhere. I could not see if anyone was driving it but it got out of control.
‘I saw at least two being run over – I ran as fast as I could.’
A woman, called Anna, witnessed the incident and described seeing ‘hundreds of people running for their lives’.
She said: ‘I turned and ran after seeing hundreds of people running, they ran for their lives.’
Shocking video footage showed hundreds of terrified shoppers sprint for their lives after the truck rammed into pedestrians. Just moments after the suspected terrorist incident, armed police wearing gas masks quickly rushed to the scene and shut off the busy road in the centre of the capital.
Maria Nathalie was on the top floor of the store when the fire alarm was triggered.
Speaking on the phone, she told NBC: ‘People started running down the stairs when the fire alarm started.
‘When we came down to the bottom of the building all we could see was a lot of smoke.’
This comes after trucks were used in terror attacks in Nice and Berlin last year. A car was also used to kill pedestrians in the Westminster Bridge two weeks ago which killed five people.
