Assault In Vienna: City Borders Tighten Until Schools Close

JAKARTA - A gunman opened fire in many parts of the City of Vienna, Austria on Monday, November 2 yesterday. The attack left two people dead. The local government has also tightened city border checks and made it mandatory for children not to go to school.

In addition to the two people killed, according to Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig, 15 other people were hospitalized with seven seriously injured. Interior Minister Karl Nehammer warned the Austrian public to stay away from the city center.

Nehammer said at the start of the press conference that "several" people had died. An official later clarified that two people were killed, a civilian and one of the attackers. Nehammer said all six locations in the attack were near the synagogue area.

“We have assembled several special forces units which are now looking for suspected terrorists. Therefore, I do not limit it to the Vienna area, because they are perpetrators who often move around, "said Nehammer.

Kurz said the army will protect important sites in Vienna so that police can focus on anti-terror operations. He added the attackers were well equipped with automatic weapons and appeared "professionally prepared."

The attack took place hours before the lockdown was in part due to the increasing spread of COVID-19. Restaurants, cafes and hotels are closed and a curfew will apply. The authorities did not identify the attacker or the reason for the attack.

"We really can't say anything about his background," said Kurz. "Of course an anti-Semitic background cannot be ruled out."

Jewish community leader Oskar Deutsch said it was unclear whether the synagogue and the adjoining office had been the target of the attack. After the incident, the office and synagogue were closed.

"After hearing gunfire, we looked down (from) the windows and saw gunmen shooting at guests from various bars and pubs," said Rabbi Schlomo Hofmeister, who lives in the Synagogue area. "The gunmen were running around and shooting at least 100 bullets or even more in front of our building," he added.

The attack on the Synagogue area was recorded as having occurred in 1981. The attack carried out by two Palestinians killed two people and injured 18 others.

Then four years later a similar incident happened. A Palestinian extremist group kills three civilians in an attack on an airport.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who has faced two deadly attacks in Paris and Nice in recent weeks, issued a statement expressing shock at the events in Vienna. He also expressed his sadness over the incident.

"This is our Europe," he said. “Our enemies must know who they are dealing with. We will not back down. "