Sydney knife assault on bishop probably a terrorist act, police say | EUROtoday

New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb advised reporters on Tuesday that the bishop had undergone surgical procedure and was “lucky to be alive.”

A big crowd gathered outdoors Christ the Good Shepherd Church after the incident, and a few clashed with police, throwing bricks and different objects. Various officers had been injured and police automobiles broken, New South Wales Police stated in a press release.

The stabbing comes as the town’s residents are nonetheless reeling from one other assault by a knife-wielding assailant at a busy shopping center on Saturday.

Six folks had been killed in that assault, and greater than a dozen others had been wounded — together with a 9-month-old toddler whose mom was amongst these killed. The attacker, recognized by police as Joel Cauchi, 40, was fatally shot by a police officer.

Police have stated that Saturday’s assault, which occurred not removed from Sydney’s famed Bondi Beach, was not linked to terrorism and that Cauchi had a historical past of psychological sickness. Investigators are analyzing why Cauchi focused ladies as he roamed the seven-story mall. An unarmed male safety guard was additionally killed.

Mass killings are uncommon in Australia, the place semiautomatic and computerized rifles and shotguns had been banned after a mass taking pictures in 1996.

Chris Minns, the New South Wales premier✓, stated Monday’s incident was distressing, coming simply days after the Bondi Junction stabbing. Speaking at a information convention early Tuesday, he stated that the town’s residents had been “on edge.”

He referred to as for calm, urging in opposition to any “tit-for-tat” response to the newest assault, which police have stated was religiously motivated.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel✓ was preaching the Assyrian Bible on Monday at 7 p.m. native time, in line with Christ The Good Shepherd Church’s Facebook web page. In a video shared extensively on social media, an individual in darkish clothes may be seen approaching him after which repeatedly attacking him with a pointy object. The video has not been verified by the police or The Washington Post.

Before the video pans to the left, obstructing the view of the assault, members of the congregation may be seen speeding towards the bishop. The assault, captured on the reside stream that has now been faraway from the church’s social media channels, lasted lower than eight seconds.

The church didn’t reply to The Post’s request for feedback. The bishop has amassed a big on-line following for his viral sermons extolling “traditional” values and opining on world politics and religions.

Initial police investigations point out the assault was pushed by “religious-motivated extremism,” Webb stated. She stated {the teenager} made feedback to the bishop as he approached that had been “centered around religion.”

Maham Javaid contributed to this report.