IP addresses are NOT logged in this forum so there's no point asking. Please note that this forum is full of homophobes, racists, lunatics, schizophrenics & absolute nut jobs with a smattering of geniuses, Chinese chauvinists, Moderate Muslims and last but not least a couple of "know-it-alls" constantly sprouting their dubious wisdom. If you believe that content generated by unsavory characters might cause you offense PLEASE LEAVE NOW! Sammyboy Admin and Staff are not responsible for your hurt feelings should you choose to read any of the content here. The OTHER forum is HERE so please stop asking.
Bullet holes seen at Copenhagen's Krudttoenden café. Photo: Reuters
One person was killed when shots were fired at a cafe in Copenhagen during a debate on freedom of speech event organised by Swedish artist Lars Vilks, who has faced numerous threats for caricaturing the Prophet Mohammed.
Danish police confirmed the death of the 40-year-old man and said the suspects fled in a dark Volkswagen Polo after the shooting shortly before 4pm yesterday at the Krudttoenden café in the Danish capital.
At least three other people were injured, including at least one uniformed police officer, the TV2 channel said.
Francois Zimeray, the French ambassador to Denmark who was at the conference, tweeted that he was "still alive."
"They fired on us from the outside. It was the same intention as [the January 7 attack on] Charlie Hebdo except they didn't manage to get in," Zimeray said.
"Intuitively I would say there were at least 50 gunshots, and the police here are saying 200. Bullets went through the doors and everyone threw themselves to the floor.
"We managed to flee the room, and now we're staying inside because it's still dangerous. The attackers haven't been caught and they could very well still be in the neighbourhood," he said.
Niels Ivar Larsen, one of the speakers at the event, told the TV2 channel: "I heard someone firing with an automatic weapons and someone shouting. Police returned the fire and I hid behind the bar. I felt surreal, like in a movie."
The cafe in northern Copenhagen, known for its jazz concerts, was hosting an event titled "Art, blasphemy and the freedom of expression" when the shots were fired.
Helle Merete Brix, one of the event's organisers, said Vilks was at the meeting but not injured.
"I saw a masked man running past," she said.
"I clearly consider this as an attack on Lars Vilks," she added, saying she was ushered away with Vilks by one of the Danish police guards that he gets whenever he is in Denmark.
Vilks, a 68-year-old Swedish artist, has faced several attempted attacks and death threats after he depicted the Prophet Mohammed as a dog in 2007. A Pennsylvania woman last year got a 10-year prison term for a plot to kill Vilks. In 2010, two brothers tried to burn down his house in southern Sweden and were imprisoned for attempted arson.
After Islamic militants attacked the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris last month, killing 12 people, Vilks said even fewer organisations were inviting him to give lectures over increased security concerns.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said France "remains by the side of the Danish authorities and people in the fight against terrorism".
BREAKING NEWS: Man shot in head at synagogue in Copenhagen as police hunt 'lone wolf' who killed a man after firing 200 bullets in failed attack on artist who drew Mohammed
Lone wolf gunman remains on the run after the fatal attack
Man shot in head at Copenhagen Synagogue and two police injured
Comes hours after 40-year-old man killed and three PCs shot at cafe
Controversial Swedish artist Lars Vilks believes he was the target
Claims it was 'the same intention' as the Charlie Hebdo attack last month
By Laurie Hanna and Flora Drury For Mailonline
Published: 15:46 GMT, 14 February 2015 | Updated: 00:58 GMT, 15 February 2015
Danish police have said one person has been shot in the head at a synagogue in Copenhagen as they hunt a 'lone wolf' gunman on the run in the city.
Two policeman have also been shot in the arms and legs close to the city's Great Synagogue.
Police have now locked down the area and helicopters are circling overhead after the suspect fled on foot.
The incident happened just two miles from where a man was killed yesterday after an Islamist fanatic opened fire on a cafe as he tried to assassinate a controversial Swedish cartoonist.
The Danish capital was in lockdown as the country remained on high alert after the 'lone wolf' gunman fired 200 bullets into the Krudttoenden cafe close to the city centre.
Lars Vilks, the controversial Swedish cartoonist who drew the Prophet Mohammed as a dog, believes he was the gunman's intended target.
Francois Zimeray, the French ambassador to Denmark, was inside the cafe when the attack began and compared it to the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris last month.
Danish police issued a picture of the main suspect this evening, taken on CCTV cameras near to where the getaway car, a VW Polo, was later found dumped.
They described him as 25-30 years old, of athletic build and Arabic appearance and carrying a black automatic weapon. Around 20 minutes after the attack, he was pictured close to the Kildevæld School in the city.
Shootout: Armed police were involved in a second shootout, close the city's Great Synagogue just hours after a man was killed at the Krudttoenden cafe in the city centre.
Second shooting: Police at the scene of a second shooting in Copenhagen, close to the city's Great Synagogue
Suspect: Police released this CCTV image of a man they are seeking in connection with the attack
Manhunt: Police described the man as aged between 25 and 30 years old, of athletic build and Arabic appearance and carrying a black automatic weapon. He remains on the loose in the city
Riddled: The windows of the Krudttoenden cafe were shattered after being blasted with 200 bullets
Attack: Shots were fired at a cafe in Copenhagen this afternoon which was hosting a debate on freedom of speech
Survivor: A victim of the gun attack was stretchered out of the Krudttoenden cafe to a waiting ambulance
Alert: Danish prime minister Helle Thorning-Schmid, said: 'We feel certain now that it was a politically motivated attack, and thereby it was a terrorist attack. We are on high alert all over the country'
Three police officers were also injured in the attack on the cafe, which was hosting a debate on art and freedom of speech when it was targeted.
Mr Vilks, a Swedish artist known for his provocative drawings of the Prophet Mohammed, has faced several attempted attacks and death threats after he depicted the Prophet as a dog in 2007.
He believes he was the gunman's intended target and said: 'What other motive could there be? It's possible it was inspired by Charlie Hebdo.'
He said he was attending a freedom of speech event in a lecture hall inside the building, which also houses a cafe, when shots rang out outside.
Controversial: Lars Vilks was said to be talking at the event, entitled Art, Blasphemy and Freedom of Speech. He believes he was the gunman's intended target
He said: 'At first there was panic. People crawled down under tables. My bodyguards quickly pulled me away.
'We were well isolated in there. It would have been much worse if this happened during the break, when people walk out.
He said he deplored the death and the injuries but was unfazed as to what it meant for his own safety, and added: 'I'm not shaken at all by this incident. Not the least.'
The country's prime minister, Helle Thorning-Schmidt, said the country was on high alert and said: 'We feel certain now that it was a politically motivated attack, and thereby it was a terrorist attack. We are on high alert all over the country.'
Visiting the scene of the shooting, she said: 'Our highest priority is to get the perpetrator arrested.'
The cafe had been hosting a debate titled Art, Blasphemy and Freedom of Expression, featuring a number of controversial speakers.
Niels Ivar Larsen, who was also speaking at the event, told how he was forced to take shelter as the gunman opened fire indiscriminately at the cafe.
He said: 'I heard someone firing with an automatic weapons and someone shouting.
'Police returned the fire and I hid behind the bar. I felt surreal, like in a movie.'
Just over a month ago, 17 people were killed in France in three days of violence that began when two Islamist gunmen burst into the Paris offices of the satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, opening fire in revenge for its publication of images of Mohammed.
Charlie Hebdo columnist Patrick Pelloux last night condemned the shootings, and told AFP: 'They targeted an artist and also France. We must fight fascism at all costs. We are all Danish tonight.'
Comparisons between the two events are already starting to be made - including by the French ambassador Francois Zimeray, who was present at the meeting.
Security tight in Copenhagen after shooting incident
He said: 'They fired on us from the outside. It was the same intention as (the January 7 attack on) Charlie Hebdo except they didn't manage to get in.
'Intuitively I would say there were at least 50 gunshots, and the police here are saying 200.
'Bullets went through the doors and everyone threw themselves to the floor. We managed to flee the room, and now we're staying inside because it's still dangerous.
'The attackers haven't been caught and they could very well still be in the neighbourhood.'
Meanwhile, social media accounts believed to be linked to Islamist fanatics claimed last month that Denmark would be one of the next targets of a terrorist attack.
One account, using the name @HazmNasr, said Denmark would be targeted by terrorists and another, using the handle @Hazm_Shami, posted the threat: 'Denmark can learn something from Paris attack. Refrain from slandering our god and our prophet, or be prepared to be like those who dead'.
Warning: On Twitter, accounts believed to be linked to Islamist fanatics had identified Denmark as the 'next stop' for terror attacks
Threat: This user posted on the same day as the Charlie Hebdo terror attacks and said: 'Denmark can learn something from terror attack'
Sweden's security police said Swedish bodyguards were with Vilks at the time of the shooting.
Authorities in southern Sweden said they were helping Danish police in the hunt for the gunmen. Sweden is joined to Denmark by bridge, and transit across is largely unchecked - sparking fears they may have followed Mr Vilks into the country in an assassination attempt.
However, Helle Merete Brix, one of the organisers of the event, said Mr Vilks, 68, had not been injured.
'I clearly consider this as an attack on Lars Vilks,' she added, saying she was ushered away with Mr Vilks by one of the Danish police guards.
'The security guards shouted 'everyone get out' and we were being pushed out of the room.
'They tried to shoot their way into the conference room. I saw one of them running by, wearing a mask.
'There was no way to tell his face. I'm not even sure if there was one or two.'
British Prime Minister David Cameron tonight sent a message of support to Denmark on Twitter and said: 'I condemn the shootings in Copenhagen. Freespech must always be protected. My thoughts are with the Danish people'
Tribute: People were beginning to leave flowers close to the cafe where the man lost his life in the Danish capital
Support: Prime Minister David Cameron sent a message of support on Twitter and said: 'My thoughts are with the Danish people'
Still alive: A tweet from Francois Zimeray, the French ambassador to Denmark, was inside the cafe when the attack began
Mr Vilks is an outspoken supporter for the need for freedom of speech.
In the wake of the Charlie Hebdo masscare, Mr Vilks complained even fewer organizations were inviting him to give lectures over increased security concerns.
Vilks also said he thought Sweden's SAPO security service, which deploys bodyguards to protect him, would step up the security around him.
'This will create fear among people on a whole different level than we're used to,' he said.
'Charlie Hebdo was a small oasis. Not many dared do what they did.'
Hundreds: Some reports say there were as many as 200 shots fired by the masked gunmen
Secure: Policemen secure the area around a building in Copenhagen, Denmark, after the attack
Patrol: Policeman patrolling on the streets of Copenhagen following the attack
Protect: Armed officers were also on the scene, protecting people who remained in the area
According to the cafe's Facebook event, they were debating the a number of points around freedom of expression, including where the limit is and do people have a right to blasphemous.
French campaigner Inna Shevchenko, leader of Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN, was one of the speakers.
Ms Shevchenko, who is known for her nude protests, which have taken place in both churches and mosques, tweeted her own account of the attack after she had escaped.
'I ran away with some people through the back door, didn't see anything. I heard about 20 shots at the entrance of the building,' she tweeted.
'With me there was Lars Vilks, French ambassador and dozens of people from the audience.
'I am not sure what was that, I don't know what we heard but everybody was running.'
London-based Agnieszka Kolek was the third speaker at the event. She organises the Passion for Freedom Art Festival each year.
Speaking: Inna Shevchenko, leader of Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN, was another of the panelists
Repeat: The French ambassador has said the attack was 'the same intention' as the Charlie Hebdo massacre
It was a Danish paper which first found itself in serious trouble for printing a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed in 2005, causing several attacks on Danish embassies in the Middle East.
French president Francois Hollande said in a statement several people may have been wounded and that Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve would go to Copenhagen as soon as possible.
In a statement, President Hollande called the shooting 'deplorable' and said Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt would have the 'full solidarity of France in this trial.'
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius condemned what he called a 'terrorist attack' in a separate statement.
THE ARTIST WHO SLEEPS WITH AN AXE UNDER HIS BED: LARS VILKS PROFILE
Lars Vilks – the Swedish artist believed to be the target of the attack – sleeps with an axe under his bed and has had a panic room installed in his house as he lives under constant threat from Islamist fanatics.
He has been a target since 2007 when his controversial cartoon depicted the prophet Mohammed as a stray dog resulted in death threats.
Mr Vilks has received numerous death threats and has lived under the constant protection of the Swedish police since 2010.
In an interview with Associated Press in 2010, Mr Vilks defended his work and insisted he was not deliberately trying to offend Islam.
He said: 'As an artist, you have to take a stand for things. If you do something, you have to take full responsibility for it.
'I'm actually not interested in offending the prophet. The point is actually to show that you can. There is nothing so holy you can't offend it.
Two years ago, an American woman who called herself Jihad Jane was sentenced to 10 years in prison for plotting to kill him.
Mr Vilks was also assaulted at a Swedish university in 2010, after showing an Iranian film that depicted the prophet entering a gay bar.
The same year, two brothers tried to burn down the cartoonist's house in southern Sweden and were later imprisoned for attempted arson.
Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, condemned the attack and said: 'Once again Europe is shocked by what appears to be another brutal terrorist attack targeted at our fundamental values and freedoms, including the freedom of expression.
'On behalf of the European Union, I wish to express our sympathy and support to Denmark and the Danish people in this situation and the victims and their families and relatives.
'Our determination to fight all kinds of extremism and terrorism is only strengthened by such attacks.
'This determination was confirmed by all EU leaders at our meeting in Brussels only two days ago. We will press forward with our new agreed priorities in the fight against terrorism. We will face this threat together.'
Jodie Ginsberg, the chief executive of Index on Censorship, added: 'The use of violence on a gathering exploring the intersection of religious and artistic freedom should send shivers down our spines.
'The Charlie Hebdo murders inspired intensified public debate about free speech and its value. Many people who had previously given little thought to free speech were drawn for the first time into online discussions or attended events to help them get a better understanding of the issues.
'It would be terrible if violent acts such as that in Copenhagen shut down free speech even further.
'The ability to express ourselves freely, to attend meetings and debates without fear of violence, is fundamental to a free society. Free speech must be protected.'
Bullet holes seen at Copenhagen's Krudttoenden café. Photo: Reuters
Danish police shot and killed a man early Sunday suspected of carrying out shooting attacks at a free speech event and then at a Copenhagen synagogue, killing two men, including a member of Denmark’s Jewish community. Five police officers were also wounded in the attacks.
Officials have not identified the perpetrator but say it is possible he was imitating the terror attacks last month in Paris in which Islamic radicals carried out a massacre at the Charlie Hebdo newsroom followed by an attack on Jews at a kosher grocery store.
“Denmark has been hit by terror,” Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said on Sunday. “We do not know the motive for the alleged perpetrator’s actions, but we know that there are forces that want to hurt Denmark. The want to rebuke our freedom of speech.”
Denmark’s Jewish Community identified the Jewish victim as 37-year-old Dan Uzan. He was guarding a building behind the synagogue during a bar mitzvah when he was shot in the head. Two police officers who were there were slightly wounded.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decried the attack and said his government plans to encourage a “massive immigration” of Jews from Europe.
Danish police conduct a search at an apartment at Mjoelnerparken at Norrebro in connection with the shootings in Copenhagen. Photo: Reuters
“Again, Jews were murdered on European soil just because they were Jews,” Netanyahu said at the start of his Cabinet meeting Sunday. “This wave of attacks is expected to continue, as well as murderous anti-Semitic attacks. Jews deserve security in every country, but we say to our Jewish brothers and sisters, Israel is your home.”
The first shooting happened before 4pm Saturday when the gunman used an automatic weapon to shoot through the windows of the Krudttoenden cultural centre during a panel discussion on freedom of expression featuring a Swedish artist who had caricatured the Prophet Muhammad. The artist, Lars Vilks, was whisked away unharmed by his bodyguards but a 55-year-old man attending the event was killed, while three police officers were wounded, authorities said.
The second attack occurred hours later, when the Jewish man was killed shortly before 1am Sunday.
Later, the shooter was confronted by police as he returned to an address that they were keeping under surveillance. Investigators described him as 25 to 30 years old with an athletic build and carrying a black automatic weapon. They released a blurred photograph of the suspect wearing dark clothes and a scarf covering part of his face.
Danish police said they believed the man shot dead by officers in Copenhagen on Sunday was responsible for two shootings in the city. Photo: Reuters
Vilks, a 68-year-old artist who has faced numerous death threats for depicting Muhammad as a dog in 2007, told The Associated Press he believed he was the intended target of the first shooting, which happened at a panel discussion titled “Art, blasphemy and freedom of expression.”
“What other motive could there be? It’s possible it was inspired by Charlie Hebdo,” he said, referring to the January 7 attack by Islamic extremists on the French newspaper that had angered Muslims by lampooning Muhammad.
Police said it was possible the gunman had planned the “same scenario” as in the Charlie Hebdo massacre.
Leaders across Europe condemned the violence and expressed support for Denmark. Sweden’s security service said it was sharing information with its Danish counterpart, while US National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said US officials were ready to help with the investigation and have been in touch with their Danish counterparts.
The depiction of the prophet is deemed insulting to many followers of Islam. According to mainstream Islamic tradition, any physical depiction of the Prophet Muhammad — even a respectful one — is considered blasphemous.
While many Muslims have expressed disgust at the deadly assault on the Charlie Hebdo employees, many were also deeply offended by its cartoons lampooning Muhammad.
First Copenhagen shooting victim identified as film maker
By JAN M. OLSEN and KARL RITTER
Feb. 15, 2015 10:25 AM EST
Police investigators work at the scene of Saturday's shooting at a free speech event in Copenhagen, Sunday, Feb. 15, 2015. Danish police shot and killed a man early Sunday suspected of carrying out shooting attacks at a free speech event and then at a Copenhagen synagogue, killing two men, including a member of Denmark's Jewish community. Five police officers were also wounded in the attacks. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Danish police shot and killed a man early Sunday suspected of carrying out shooting attacks at a free speech event and then at a Copenhagen synagogue, killing a Danish documentary filmmaker and a member of the Scandinavian country's Jewish community. Five police officers were also wounded in the attacks.
"Denmark has been hit by terror," Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt said. "We do not know the motive for the alleged perpetrator's actions, but we know that there are forces that want to hurt Denmark. They want to rebuke our freedom of speech."
Jens Madsen, head of the Danish intelligence agency PET, said investigators believe the gunman was inspired by Islamic radicalism.
"PET is working on a theory that the perpetrator could have been inspired by the events in Paris. He could also have been inspired by material sent out by (the Islamic State group) and others," Madsen said.
Islamic radicals carried out a massacre at the Charlie Hebdo newsroom in Paris last month, followed by an attack on Jews at a kosher grocery store, taking the lives of 17 victims.
At a news conference Madsen also said investigators have identified the suspect and that he is someone who had been on the agency's "radar." He did not reveal his identity.
Later Sunday, at least two people with handcuffs were taken out by police from an Internet cafe in Copenhagen, Danish media reported. Police spokesman Steen Hansen told The Associated Press that "the action was part of the police investigation" but declined to give further details.
The Danish Film Institute said the 55-year-old man killed at the free speech event was documentary filmmaker Finn Noergaard.
The institute's chief Henrik Bo Nielsen said he was shocked and angry to find out Noergaard was gunned down while attending a discussion on art and free speech.
Noergaard directed and produced documentaries for Danish television, including the 2004 "Boomerang boy" about an Australian boy's dreams to become a world boomerang champion and the 2008 "Le Le" about Vietnamese immigrants in Denmark.
Denmark's Chief Rabbi, Jair Melchior, identified the Jewish victim as Dan Uzan, 37, a longtime security guard for the 7,000-strong community. He was guarding a building behind the synagogue during a bat mitzvah when he was shot in the head. Two police officers who were there were slightly wounded.
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decried the attack and said his government plans to encourage a "massive immigration" of Jews from Europe.
"Again, Jews were murdered on European soil just because they were Jews," Netanyahu said at the start of his Cabinet meeting Sunday. "This wave of attacks is expected to continue, as well as murderous anti-Semitic attacks. Jews deserve security in every country, but we say to our Jewish brothers and sisters, Israel is your home."
Other leaders also condemned the attacks, including British Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and EU President Donald Tusk,
"The shootings in Copenhagen are an appalling attack on free speech and religious freedom," Cameron said. "Two innocent people have been murdered simply for their beliefs and my thoughts are with their loved ones and all those injured at this tragic time."
The first shooting happened before 4 p.m. Saturday when the gunman used an automatic weapon to shoot through the windows of the Krudttoenden cultural center during a panel discussion on freedom of expression featuring a Swedish artist who had caricatured the Prophet Muhammad. The artist, Lars Vilks, was whisked away unharmed by his bodyguards, but Noergaard was killed and three police officers were wounded.
The attack at the synagogue occurred hours later, shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday.
About four hours later, the shooter was confronted by police as he returned to an address that they were keeping under surveillance. Investigators described him as 25 to 30 years old with an athletic build and carrying a black automatic weapon. They released a blurred photograph of the suspect wearing dark clothes and a scarf covering part of his face.
Oliver Larsen, 26, who lives in a building above the street where the suspect was shot dead, said he was awoken at 5 a.m. by the sound of shooting.
"I looked out of the window to see what was going on and I saw a lot of policemen and a guy lying on the street; he was probably dead," Larsen told the AP.
Vilks, a 68-year-old artist who has faced numerous death threats for depicting Muhammad as a dog in 2007, told The AP he believed he was the intended target of the first shooting, which happened at a panel discussion titled "Art, blasphemy and freedom of expression."
"What other motive could there be? It's possible it was inspired by Charlie Hebdo," he said, referring to the Jan. 7 attack by Islamic extremists on the French newspaper that had angered Muslims by lampooning Muhammad.
The depiction of the prophet is deemed insulting to many followers of Islam. According to mainstream Islamic tradition, any physical depiction of the Prophet Muhammad — even a respectful one — is considered blasphemous.
While many Muslims have expressed disgust at the deadly assault on the Charlie Hebdo employees, many were also deeply offended by its cartoons lampooning Muhammad.
The attacks took place two days after Denmark and its partners in the European Union agreed to dramatically boost cooperation in the counter-terrorism field as a result of the January attacks in Paris, which claimed the lives of 17 victims.
The EU's law enforcement agency, Europol, said Sunday it was in contact with Danish authorities and proposing its help to find out as much as possible about the Copenhagen gunman and whether he was acting alone or in concert with others.
"We are offering our expertise and capabilities from our anti-terrorist unit including access to our databases," said Europol spokesman Soeren Pedersen.
___
Danica Kirka in London, Daniel Estrin in Jerusalem, John-Thor Dahlburg in Brussels and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin contributed to this story.
Source: Slain suspect in Copenhagen attacks just out of jail
By JAN M. OLSEN and KARL RITTER
Feb. 16, 2015 1:04 PM EST
FILE - This is an undated police handout images of Omar Abdel Hamid El-Hussein . The slain gunman Omar Abdel Hamid El-Hussein suspected in the deadly Copenhagen attacks was a 22-year-old with a history of violence and may have been inspired by Islamic terrorists — and possibly the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris, Danish authorities said Sunday Feb. 15, 2015. (AP Photo/POLFOTO, Police Handout)
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — The slain gunman behind two deadly shooting attacks in Copenhagen was released from jail just two weeks ago and might have become radicalized there last summer, a source close to the Danish terror investigation told The Associated Press on Monday.
Two Danish sources close to the investigation confirmed to the AP that the slain gunman was named Omar Abdel Hamid El-Hussein. They spoke on condition of anonymity because Copenhagen police have not named the gunman, who they said was a 22-year-old Dane with a history of violence and gang connections. Several Danish media have already named him.
One source told the AP that El-Hussein had been in pre-trial detention for a long time but was released two weeks ago. He also said the corrections authority had alerted Danish security service PET last year after they noticed worrisome changes in El-Hussein's behavior last summer.
He wouldn't give specifics but said such alerts are issued when inmates change their attitude or behavior in way that "sets off alarm bells."
PET spokeswoman Lotte Holmstrup declined to comment on the report, saying "we are working on finding out what has happened."
PET director Jens Madsen on Sunday confirmed that the gunman was known to the agency before last weekend's attacks in Copenhagen that killed two people and wounded five police officers. He said the gunman have been inspired by last month's terror attacks by Islamic extremists in Paris that killed 17 people, but did not elaborate on when the agency began tracking him.
The news about the suspected gunman came as Danes mourned the victims of the country's first fatal terror attacks in 30 years — and, in an unusual development, some also put flowers on the street at the spot where police killed El-Hussein. The prime ministers of Denmark and Sweden were expected to join thousands of people at memorials in Copenhagen on Monday evening.
While a Danish court on Monday jailed two suspected accomplices of El-Hussein's for 10 days, Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt insisted there were no signs the gunman had any links to a wider terror cell.
"But we will, of course, in the coming time evaluate our fight against radicalization. We are already doing a lot," she said.
In November 2013, police distributed photos of El-Hussein because he was wanted for a stabbing on a subway train in Copenhagen. At the time, police said he stabbed a 19-year-old man in his left thigh with a large knife.
It wasn't immediately clear whether he was in pre-trial detention for that crime.
Investigators on Monday released more information about the gunman's movements between the attacks, one Saturday afternoon at a cultural center and another early Sunday outside a synagogue, both in Copenhagen.
Police spokesman Joergen Skov said the gunman visited an Internet cafe late Saturday, about six-and-a-half hours after the first attack. Police raided the facility on Sunday and detained four people, including the two men arraigned on Monday, Skov said. The other two were released.
Investigators released new images of El-Hussein and asked witnesses who had seen him enter or leave the Internet cafe to contact police.
"We are of course interested in whether he was alone and whether he was carrying anything and in which direction he went," Skov said.
Denmark's red-and-white flag flew at half-staff from official buildings across the capital Monday. Mourners placed flowers and candles at the cultural center where documentary filmmaker Finn Noergaard, 55, was killed and at the synagogue where Dan Uzan, a 37-year-old security guard, was gunned down.
There was also a smaller mound of flowers where the gunman was slain, which critics said was an insult to his victims. Ozlem Cekic, lawmaker of the left-wing Socialist People's Party, called it "a huge assault on the Danish population."
Denmark has been targeted by a series of foiled terror plots since the 2005 publication of 12 caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad in the Jyllands-Posten newspaper. The cartoons triggered riots in many Muslim countries and militant Islamists called for vengeance.
"I want to underline that this is not a conflict between Islam and the West," Thorning-Schmidt said. "This is a conflict between the core values of our society and violent extremists."
One of the participants in the free speech event targeted Saturday was Swedish artist Lars Vilks, who caricatured the prophet in 2007. Vilks, who was whisked away unharmed by his bodyguards, told the AP he thought he was the intended target of that attack.
Other participants said they dropped to the floor, looking for places to hide as the shooting started. The gunman never entered the center but sprayed it with bullets from outside in a gun battle with police.
World leaders, including British Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, condemned the Copenhagen attacks.
"The terrorist attacks have the same causes in Paris and Copenhagen," Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said Monday as she visited Copenhagen in a show of solidarity. "Our cities are symbols of democracy, Paris and Copenhagen. We are here and we are not afraid."
Denmark's last deadly terror attack took place in 1985, when a bomb exploded outside the Copenhagen office of airline North West Orient, killing a 27-year-old Algerian tourist.
___
AP journalist Philipp-Moritz Jenne contributed to this report.
Danish police arrest man suspected of links to February 14-15 shootings
Reuters
February 27, 2015, 10:04 pm
UK-DENMARK-SHOOTINGanish police arrest suspect related to February 14-15 shootings Investigative personnel work at the scene of a cafe shooting in Oesterbro, in Copenhagen, February 15, 2015. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Danish police said they arrested a young man on Friday and charged him with complicity in the shootings in Copenhagen on Feb. 14 and 15 in which two people were killed and five police officers wounded.
Police had no further comments. Danish media reports described the man as personally connected with the gunman, Omar El-Hussein, who was shot dead by police on Feb. 15.
Two other men have also been detained on charges of aiding Hussein.
State-owned DR TV reported that all three men charged with complicity in the shootings knew each other, and lived in the same neighbourhood as Hussein.
Authorities say Hussein was the man who fired on an event promoting free speech, killing movie director Finn Norgaard, and at a synagogue, killing volunteer Jewish guard Dan Uzan.
A preliminary legal hearing for the newly arrested man is to take place Saturday.
(Reporting by Alexander Tange; Editing by Andrew Roche)
anish police arrest suspect related to February 14-15 shootings Investigative personnel work at the scene of a cafe shooting in Oesterbro, in Copenhagen, February 15, 2015. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
