Six killed after gunman opens fire 'in custody dispute' at mother's shelter
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Six people are dead following a shooting at a shelter for mothers in Germany.
Emergency services responded to the shooting in Stade, a city 60 km west of Hamburg in Lower Saxony, this morning.
Officers have detained two suspects after a gunman opened fire at the youth welfare centre on Dankersstraße, according to Bild.
The centre is believed to help new and expectant mothers escape from domestic abuse.
Local police reported the motive for the shooting is believed to be a custody dispute over a three-month-old baby girl.
The suspect reportedly had a custody appointment at the facility, alongside many of the victims.
The suspect’s child and her 34-year-old mother survived the attack.
Pictures of the mass shooting showed police surrounding a car after they shot the tyres out.
Young mothers with children were seen being escorted to safety from the scene.
Four women and one man were originally reported dead, with a sixth adult now confirmed to have died of wounds in hospital.
Both the gunman’s motives and the role of the second suspect, who is in custody, remain unclear, police said.
A witness told German broadcaster NIUS: ‘Police had fired at the car from some distance away and shot out three of the tyres.
The Lüneburg Police Directorate said in a statement: ‘A police operation is currently taking place in Stade. Avoid the area widely!’
In a message on WhatsApp,Polizei Stade told residents to avoid the area and follow the instructions of emergency personnel.
Located in the lower regions of the River Elbe, Stade is home to around 50,000 inhabitants.
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Mass shootings remain relatively rare occurrences in Germany.
In 2023, a gunman shot six people in Hamburg before killing himself at a Jehovah’s Witness hall.
An 18-year-old German-Iranian killed at least nine people in Munich after having an obsession with mass killings.
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