One gunman has been shot dead by police. Authorities are urging the public to stay inside while the other gunmen — it is unclear how many there are in total — remain at large.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz and Interior Minister Karl Nehammer have described the incident as a “terror attack.”
“We are still in battle against the would-be terrorists,” Nehammer said on Austrian public broadcaster ORF, adding that several suspects are carrying assault rifles. “We assume there are several heavily armed perpetrators.”
Gunfire erupted in the Austrian capital at around 8 p.m. local time, hours before the start of a nationwide lockdown to combat a resurgence of Covid-19, according to police.
Vienna’s mayor Michael Ludwig said the attackers started randomly shooting at people in a busy district packed with cafes and restaurants near Vienna’s main synagogue, Seitenstettengasse Temple.
“We are trying to find out more about the perpetrators and keep the population safe,” he told ORF
Kurz told ORF that “an anti-Semitic motive cannot be excluded” due to the attack’s proximity to the synagogue.
Oskar Deutsch, the head of Vienna’s Jewish community, said in a tweet that it was unclear whether the synagogue was a target, but that it was closed at the time of the shooting.
Kurz said the Austrian army has been deployed to help protect buildings and properties. “We are currently going through difficult times in our republic. I would like to thank all the emergency services who risk their lives, especially today for our safety,” he added.
Across Europe, leaders have strongly condemned the attack.
“After France, it is a friendly country that is under attack,” French President Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter. France has seen two terror attacks in recent weeks.
“Europe strongly condemns this cowardly act that violates life and our human values,” the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, said on Twitter.
Other leaders have shared statements expressing their shock and sorrow, including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
This is a developing story, updates to follow
Stephanie Halasz and Tim Lister contributed to this report.