Police in New Zealand shot and killed a Sri Lankan national who stabbed and wounded at least six people in an Auckland supermarket.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern termed the incident as a “terrorist attack”.
Ardern claimed, the man, who was under police surveillance, was inspired by the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group.
The man has not been identified yet.
The New Zealand Police killed the man within 60 seconds of the attack on Friday.
“What happened today was despicable, it was hateful it was wrong,” a media report quoted Ardern as saying during a press conference.
“It was carried out by an individual, not a faith,” she asserted.
Prime Minister Ardern said she was “absolutely gutted” to hear about the attack.
According to health officials, among the six wounded people, three are in critical condition while one is in serious condition.
The incident of attack took place at the Countdown supermarket at LynnMall in New Lynn district in the afternoon on Friday.
It has been reported that the attacker took a large knife from a display cabinet in the store and went on a stabbing spree.
Police surveillance teams had been close by the entire time.
The man arrived in New Zealand in October 2011.
It has been reported the man had been under round-the-clock monitoring and heavy surveillance due to concerns about his ideology.
He was also known to multiple agencies and was also on a terror watchlist.
Ardern said until Friday, he had not committed any offence.
When asked about the motive of the man, Arden said they were “Isis-inspired”.