WUERZBURG, GERMANY—A 17-year-old Afghan refugee was shot dead by police after injuring four passengers in a slashing attack aboard a train late Monday near Wuerzburg in the southern German state of Bavaria, authorities said.

Three of the victims were critically wounded.

An initial investigation found that the attacker, who wielded a knife and an axe, came to Germany as an unaccompanied minor, Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann told German broadcasters.

Asked if the violence was fuelled by Islamist motivations, Herrmann said the suspect had shouted something in connection with the attack, but that the investigation was still underway.

The commuter train was travelling from Treuchtlingen to Wuerzburg at the time of the attack.

In addition to the wounded, 14 people aboard the train were receiving care for shock.

After the attack, the boy tried to flee. A police special operations unit, which happened to be nearby at the time of the incident, pursued the suspect, who was shot dead when he tried to attack the officers.

Based on witness accounts, police believe the boy acted alone, Herrmann said.

The boy, who arrived in Germany without his parents, had lived in a refugee home in Ochsenfurt in the Wuerzburg area, and most recently was with a foster family.

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