Three dead in Melbourne car rampage
Young child among victims after driver ploughs into shoppers in city centre
Three people died and 20 were injured after a car drove into a crowd of shoppers in Melbourne, Australia.
Authorities in the state of Victoria confirmed one of the victims was a young child, but have not yet released names.
"Police have arrested the driver, and say it was a deliberate act, but not linked to terrorism in any way," The Guardian says. Officers reportedly shot and wounded the man before his arrest.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The suspect, a 26-year-old whose identification is not yet known, had allegedly taken a woman hostage after stabbing his brother, officials said. The woman reportedly managed to escape before the car crashed into the shoppers.
Police called off the chase before it reached the city centre due to safety concerns.
Video footage shows the car being driven in circles outside Flinders Street station in the minutes leading up to the incident, with bystanders running to get out of its path.
[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"content_original","fid":"106691","attributes":{"class":"media-image"}}]]
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
The driver then made his way to Bourke Street Mall, a pedestrianised area, before driving "at speed" into the crowds.
"There was no hesitation when he got to the crowd, he just mowed them down," witness Sharn Baylis told Fairfax Media. "He was going around 60km/h [37mph] but it seemed faster. People were literally just flying like skittles, bouncing off the bonnet and smashing into the shops."
Former Victoria police commissioner Christine Nixon, who was at the mall, told ABC Radio the car was "probably about a metre from me" before she heard two gunshots.
The driver's condition was not released, but officials said police had shot him in the arm. No information about his brother's condition was released.
-
Political cartoons for December 17Cartoons Wednesday's political cartoons include healthcare costs, the affordability hoax, giving up pencils, and more
-
Trump vs. BBC: what’s at stake?The Explainer The US president has filed a $10 billion lawsuit over the editing of Panorama documentary, with the broadcaster vowing to defend itself
-
Animal Farm: has Andy Serkis made a pig’s ear of Orwell?Talking Point Animated adaptation of classic dystopian novella is light on political allegory and heavy on lowbrow gags
-
Australia weighs new gun laws after antisemitic attackSpeed Read A father and son opened fire on Jewish families at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, killing at least 15
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
-
Nigeria confused by Trump invasion threatSpeed Read Trump has claimed the country is persecuting Christians
-
Sanae Takaichi: Japan’s Iron Lady set to be the country’s first woman prime ministerIn the Spotlight Takaichi is a member of Japan’s conservative, nationalist Liberal Democratic Party
-
Russia is ‘helping China’ prepare for an invasion of TaiwanIn the Spotlight Russia is reportedly allowing China access to military training