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LISBON, March 28 (AP) — Portuguese authorities say they are investigating a man who wielded a machete killed two women and wounded several others at an Ismaili Muslim center in Lisbon. Tuesday’s stabbing is believed to be a possible act of terror.
Ismaili community leader Narzim Ahmed told Portuguese television channel SIC that the women were Portuguese staff at the centre.
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Officers dispatched to the center late Tuesday morning encountered a man with a knife, according to a police statement. Officers ordered him to surrender and he was shot as he walked towards them, the statement said.
A suspect is in police custody at a Lisbon hospital. Investigators are looking into a possible motive for terrorism.
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Several others were injured, the statement said, without giving further details.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa said police shot dead the suspect and told reporters the attack was a “criminal act”.
“Everything points to an isolated incident,” Costa said, without elaborating.
Armed police from special operations forces could be seen forming a line of defense outside the building.
Shia Imams Ismaili Muslims, commonly known as Ismailis, belong to the Shiite branch of Islam. Ismaili Muslims are a multicultural community living in more than 25 countries around the world.
Portugal has not seen any major terrorist attacks in recent decades, and religious violence is almost unheard of.
“The Ismaili community is shocked and saddened by this incident and is extending support to the victim’s family,” the Ismaili community said in a statement. Neither police nor the community have confirmed the identity of the deceased. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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