Christchurch massacre: PM confirms children among shooting victims – as it happened
Children are among the 49 killed in yesterday’s terrorist attacks on two mosques in Christchurch, prime minister Jacinda Ardern has said The main suspect intended to continue his attack and had modified weapons but was arrested by two community police officers, she said. There were two other firearms were in his vehicle and he was arrested 36 minutes after the first emergency call He is facing one count of murder but there will be further charges Ardern said the investigation was ongoing but authorities believed there was only “one primary perpetrator.” Thirty-nine people are in hospital, 11 are in intensive care, ranging from children to the elderly A 28-year-old Australian man, Brenton Tarrant, has appeared in court on Saturday morning charged with murder. No application for bail was made and he is due to appear in court again on 5 April. New Zealanders have rallied around the Muslim community as heartbreaking details continued to emerge about those killed and injured. Daoud Nabi, a native of Afghanistan; Syrian refugee Khaled Mustafa; and four-year-old Abdullahi Dirie, who was at the mosque with his father and four siblings, are all said to be among the dead, as well as a 14-year-old boy who was among the injured but later died in hospital, according to his father. Attorney general David Parker has reportedly told an Auckland rally the government will move to ban semi-automatic weapons. Earlier, Ardern has said the nation’s gun laws will change after it emerged the suspect had a firearms licence and began legally stockpiling weapons in 2017. He was carrying two semi-automatic weapons and two shotguns at the time of the attack. Four for the 49 people who were killed died on the way to hospital. A heightened police presence is visible across the country, including at mosques and public events, and the public have been urged to remain vigilant. Commissioner Mike Bush said: “We are not searching for anyone posing a threat but that doesn’t mean that they don’t exist.” The main suspect, one of four who were initially arrested, was taken into custody 36 minutes after the first emergency calls came in. Leaders from around the world, including the Queen as head of state, have offered their condolences to those affected. Donald Trump offered sympathy and comfort during a call to Ardern but has separately said white nationalism is “not really” a growing threat when asked about the issue in light of Friday’s shooting. Australian senator Senator Fraser Anning who blamed “fears over the increasing muslim presence” for the attack was pelted with an egg by a teenage boy at a press conference!
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