Gunman 'inspired by Paris attacks'

A policeman places flowers close to the scene of the cafe shooting in Oesterbroin. Photo: Independent.Co.UK

The suspected gunman in two fatal shootings in Copenhagen may have been inspired by the Islamist attacks in Paris a month ago, Danish police said yesterday.

The man, who was killed in a shootout with police earlier in the day, "may have been inspired by the events that took place in Paris a few weeks ago," Jens Madsen from the Security and Intelligence Service told reporters.

The man may "generally have been inspired by militant Islamist propaganda issued by ISIS and other terror organisations," Madsen said.

Police also said that the man had been "on the radar" of the intelligence service before the shootings.

Police were still carrying out search operations in different areas of Copenhagen yesterday, Madsen said.

The suspected gunman is believed by police to have been the sole perpetrator behind two separate shooting in Copenhagen Saturday and early yesterday, each leaving one person dead. The first attack targeted a cultural centre hosting a debate on Islam and free speech and the second attack was on a synagogue.

Meanwhile, the German city of Braunschweig yesterday cancelled a planned carnival parade because of a "specific threat of an Islamist attack", police said. The event, which was to begin at 1120 GMT, was called off following a tip by "reliable state security sources", police said in a statement.