One man was killed and three policemen were wounded Saturday in a shooting in Copenhagen where a cartoonist known for caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad was holding an event about free speech.
The Danish PET security service said in a statement the circumstances surrounding the shooting “indicate that we are talking about a terror attack.”
Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt also referred to the incident as a terror attack, saying in a statement that “Denmark has today been hit by a cynical act of violence. Everything leads us to believe that the shooting was a political attack and therefore a terrorist act.”
Copenhagen police confirmed that a 40-year-old man was killed and three officers were injured. Two suspected gunmen fled the scene in a dark Volkswagen Polo and were at large.
Police spokesman Henrik Blandebjerg confirmed that three colleagues at the event were also shot.
The cafe in northern Copenhagen, known for its jazz concerts, was hosting an event titled “Art, blasphemy and the freedom of expression” when the shots were fired.
Helle Merete Brix, one of the organizers of the event, told The Associated Press that Vilks was present at the event but not injured.
“I saw a masked man running past,” she said. “A couple of police officers were injured.”
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius condemned the attack, saying in a statement that France “remains by the side of the Danish authorities and people in the fight against terrorism.”
After jihadists attacked the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris last month, killing 12 people, Vilks told the AP that even fewer organizations were inviting him to give lectures over increased security concerns.
Vilks also said he thought Sweden’s SAPO security service, which deploys bodyguards to protect him, would step up the security around him.
“This will create fear among people on a whole different level than we’re used to,” he said. “Charlie Hebdo was a small oasis. Not many dared do what they did.”
The Islamic State terror group on Saturday released a new video threatening new attacks against France and Belgium, a month after deadly attacks in the French capital by radical Islamists left 17 dead.
The nine-minute video in Arabic and French entitled “A Message to France” claims that Islamic State operatives are deployed throughout both European countries and await orders to commit additional attacks, specifically in Paris and Brussels, Israel Radio reported.
“Islamic State fighters are deployed everywhere and your nightmare begins now, along with the real war,” the Walla news site quoted the Arabic-language video saying.
The clip opens with recorded statements by French President Francois Hollande and former president Nicolas Sarkozy, followed by a segment from a home video of Amedy Coulibaly, the terrorist responsible for attacking a kosher supermarket in Paris last month, killing four and injuring nine.
A flag of the Islamic State is prominently displayed on the wall behind Coulibaly as he declares his allegiance to the group. Coulibaly was also suspected of killing a policewoman a day before the attack.
Following Coulibaly’s segment, two French-speaking Islamic State fighters wearing military fatigues implored Muslims throughout France to kill non-believers.
“I call on my brothers who live among the infidels in France: If you can not emigrate, act within the country. Kill them with the weapons that you have available to you. Spit on them, burn their cars, burn police stations; don’t take pity on them,” one of the men said.
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