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Of the six people who were injured in the attack, three were taken to hospitals in the area in critical condition, while another was in serious condition and two others were in moderate condition, per theAssociated Press, which also cited authorities.
In anews conference, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said, “A violent extremist undertook a terrorist attack,” later adding, “This was a violent attack, it was senseless, and I am so sorry it happened.”
Ardern, 41, also noted that the man behind the attacks was from Sri Lanka and a “supporter of ISIS ideology” and that the violence was “ISIS-inspired.”
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Area Police Commissioner Andrew Coster also addressed the attacks in the same press conference as Ardern, revealing that a police surveillance team and a specialist tactics group had already been watching the man.
According to CNN, the man came to New Zealand in 2011 and became a person of interest in October 2016.
Ahead of the attack, police followed the individual from his home to the supermarket, though they initially had no reason to suspect he was planning an attack.
“He entered the store, as he had done before. He obtained a knife from within the store,” Coster said. “Surveillance teams were as close as they possibly could be to monitor his activity.”
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After grabbing the weapon, witnesses reported that the man shouted “Allahu akbar” — which translates to “God is great” — and began the assault, perThe New Zealand Herald.
“We were doing absolutely everything possible to monitor him and indeed the fact that we were able to intervene so quickly, in roughly 60 seconds, shows just how closely we were watching him,” Coster said.
When asked why authorities did not kick the man out of the country for prior suspicions, Arden said that police did what was legally possible “to keep people safe from this individual.”
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“Our hearts are heavy knowing what our team and customers have witnessed and been through,” said General Manager of Safety, Kiri Hannifi. “Our thoughts are with those who were injured and their families, and we will be supporting all of our Lynnmall team in particular.”
New Zealand has been subject to terror attacks in recent years, including a tragedy in 2019 when 49 people were killed and 20 others were injured aftermass shootingsat two mosques.
In May of this year, four people were stabbed in a supermarket in Dunedin,ABC Newsreported.
source: people.com
