At least five people were injured after an axe-brandishing man went on a rampage at Dusseldorf's main train station, according to local press. Police confirmed in press briefing that two of those injured were women. One person was hospitalized due to the serious extent of their injuries. Spiegel reported that eyewitnesses saw people bleeding on the ground, but there has been no confirmation from police.

The suspect, from the former Yugoslavia lives in Wuppertal, 28 kilometers from Dusseldorf, and has “obvious mental health problem”, according to a police statement.

Police arrived at the scene at 8.50pm local time after being alerted to a violent situation at the station. It said in an earlier press conference that five people were injured but have now confirmed that this figure has risen to seven, three of whom severely .

The police have found the attacker’s axe and said it was not yet clear if he had acted alone. Surveillance footage captured another person running quickly from the scene, but police said it was not clear if this person was running away from the attack.

A police spokesman told the press that the attacks happened at two tracks and in the station hall. He said that the arrested suspect had tried to escape across the railroad tracks onto Ellerstrasse, injuring himself in the process. The officer said he could not comment on the age or nationality of the attacker, who is badly injured in the hospital. No information on the motive was provided.

“We don’t want to jump to conclusions that he was alone,” the spokesman said. Special police forces are continuing to search the tracks and the area remains on lockdown. The police added that “speculation won’t help” and said Dusseldorf police would inform the public about the ongoing operation at the main station.



Witnesses reported seeing injured people lying on the ground, and at least one man armed with an axe. Other reports said the attacker used a machete according to the BBC. Police have yet to confirm details, and there are no reports of fatalities.

According to ABC, the regional police said on Twitter that Dusseldorf's station is currently closed due to a "comprehensive" police response there.

The police spokesperson could not confirm whether any suspects were arrested or how serious the injuries were. Several trains have been cancelled or diverted due to the police activity, according to tweets by regional train DB Regio.

Federal police spokesman for the regional state of North Rhine-Wesphalia, Rainer Kerstiens, described the attack to Deutsche Welle as an “amok attack.”

A reporter for German newspaper Der Speigel at the scene said he had seen two injured people, and the situation was returning to calm. Images shared on social media from the scene showed that the station had been cordoned off by police, and helicopters hovered overhead.

Emergency vehicles filed through Konrad Adenauer square outside the station entrance. Duesseldorf's Hauptbahnhof is the city's primary railway station, serving a quarter of a million passengers daily.

So far these has been no information about the identity - or origin - of the attackers.

Graphic video of the attack aftermath below:



“They just came in here and attacked people with an ax. I saw many things in my life, but I have never seen anything like this. He just started hitting people with his axe,” the man says. “The whole station is full of police officers. It is sickening.”

