Vienna terror attack: PM Modi says, ‘India stands with Austria’, deeply shocked by dastardly attack

“Deeply shocked and saddened by the dastardly terror attacks in Vienna. India stands with Austria in this tragic time. My thoughts are with the victims and their families,” PM Modi said in a tweet on Tuesday.  

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday conveyed his condolences over the terror attacks in Vienna, tweeting he was “shocked and saddened” by the dastardly attacks in Austria’s capital city. He also said India was with Austria “in this tragic time.”

“Deeply shocked and saddened by the dastardly terror attacks in Vienna. India stands with Austria in this tragic time. My thoughts are with the victims and their families,” PM Modi said in a tweet on Tuesday.

Three people have died after multiple gunmen opened fire across central Vienna on Monday. Police said on Twitter that at least one person had been killed and that the injured included a police officer. Vienna mayor Michael Ludwig told public broadcast ORF that 15 people were being treated in Vienna hospitals, and that seven were in a serious condition. Police also said they had shot dead one of the attackers.

Unverified footage on social media showed gunmen walking through the streets, apparently shooting at people at random, wounding several. The motive was under investigation, but Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said the possibility it was an anti-Semitic attack cannot be ruled out, given that the shooting began outside Vienna's main synagogue.

Interior Minister Nehammer said all six locations in the attack were near the street housing the central synagogue. The attack happened hours before a partial lockdown was due to go into place due to the rising spread of the coronavirus, with restaurants, cafes and hotels shuttered and restrictions on movement at night. Authorities gave no indication of the identity of the assailants or reason for the attack.