Sydney — Australian police and witnesses say a knife-wielding man yelling “Allahu akbar,” or “God is great,” attempted to stab several people in downtown Sydney on Tuesday before being arrested. At least one woman was brought to a hospital.
Witnesses say the man, wielding a long knife, tried to stab multiple people near a busy intersection.
New South Wales state police said in a statement that the man was caught and the woman was in stable condition.
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There were unconfirmed reports of other people being stabbed – one fatally.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports Australian police said they discovered a body near the scene of the knife rampage but were still trying to determine if it was linked to the earlier attack.
A witness told reporters the man was screaming comments about religion before yelling to police that he wanted to be shot. Police said he used the Arabic phrase “Allahu akbar.”
The incident brought the central business district of Australia’s biggest city to an early afternoon standstill, the Reuters news service reports.
Reuters quotes Police Superintendent Gavin Wood as telling reporters in Sydney the woman was stabbed in the back but her wounds weren’t life-threatening and that the attack seemed to be unprovoked.
