Two people – a woman aged in her 20’s and another woman in her 40’s, both Portuguese nationals died, and another two people were seriously injured this morning at the Ismaeli Centre in Lisbon after a man attacked worshippers with a knife.
The two women were inside the Ismaili Center situated on Lusiada Avenue, when a man entered the space just before 11:00 carrying a large knife. According to a statement from the PSP’s national directorate, the “knife” attack on the Ismaili Centre was reported to police at 10:57 a.m., and the first officers who responded to the incident arrived at the scene a minute later.
The officers came across a man armed with a large knife. The attacker was ordered to surrender which he refused to do and advanced on officers wielding a knife. Deemed a serious threat he was shot and incapacitated.
The attack is being deemed as an ‘isolated act,’ as the Afghan man is a beneficiary of international protection status, and was not a ‘person of concern’ for the authorities said the Minister of Internal Affairs. “Everything suggests that this is an isolated act,” said José Luís Carneiro, adding that the circumstances and motivations of the crime are being investigated, and warning of the need to “avoid hasty analysis.”
The official, who was speaking to journalists in Lisbon at the entrance to a meeting with mayors of the metropolitan area, indicated that the suspect is “a relatively young man with three minor children,” and passed through a refugee centre in Greece, where his wife died.
The family’s relocation to Portugal took place under European cooperation and the man has remained in the country living “a very quiet life,” and benefiting from the support of the Ismaili community.
In a statement sent to Lusa, the president of the National Council of the Ismaili Muslim Community, Rahim Firozali, revealed that the attack occurred during classes and other activities at the Ismaili Centre, but said he did not know the motivations of the man who entered the centre’s premises armed with a sharp object.
The aggressor was transported to the Hospital of São José (Lisbon), where he is being treated for wounds.
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, today asked that the attack on the Ismaili Centre in Lisbon, not to be generalised as an ‘isolated act,’ as this would be both unfair and hasty, as nothing justifies criminal acts such as this.
The Judicial Police are currently investigating the incident.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
