Sydney stabbing: Multiple people injured at a church in new incident in Australia
A bishop was stabbed during a livestreamed service on Monday as Sydney, Australia, was hit by another stabbing incident two days after a man stabbed six people to death in a busy shopping mall before being shot by a police officer.
New South Wales Police Force said in an update on X that it responded to a call from a church in Wakekly, a suburb west of Sydney, at 7.10 p.m. local time (5.39 a.m. ET) Monday, where there were reports that “a number of people were stabbed.”
Hundreds of angry people rushed to the scene and some clashed with riot police, with vehicles damaged, the Associated Press reported. The church and local leaders pleaded for calm.
A video shared widely on social media appears to show a priest being stabbed repeatedly, while delivering a sermon, by a man in a black T-shirt who is then tackled by members of the congregation. The church routinely livestreams its services and events.
A subsequent video taken by a church-goer showed people helping the bishop as he lay on the floor.
Police said the incident took place on Welcome Street, where the Christ the Good Shepherd Church, which follows Assyrian Orthodox Christianity, is located.
The church advertised an “Assyrian Bible Preaching” event Monday night, with its bishop, H.G. Mar Mari Emmanuel, whose picture matches that of the man stabbed in the video.
None of the injuries were life-threatening, police said, and the victims were being treated by paramedics. A male was arrested and was “assisting police with inquiries,” the statement added.
Police said at 10 p.m. (8 a.m. ET) that they were still on the scene and urged people to avoid the area.
The church said the bishop and a senior priest were in stable condition at a hospital and asked for people’s prayers. “It is the bishop’s and father’s wishes that you also pray for the perpetrator,” the church said in a statement on social media “We also kindly ask anyone at the church premises to leave in peace.”
The NSW Ambulance service said it treated a man in his 50s for multiple cuts and three others were treated for one or more cuts.
The premier of New South Wales, Chris Minns, described the scenes as “disturbing” on social media and urged the community to remain calm and “stick together.” Religious leaders expressed shock and condolences.
Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone, leader of the neighboring municipal government, described the bishop as a community leader. “This is a very emotional situation. Obviously the community is very upset,” Carbone told Sky News.
It comes after Saturday’s attack at the Westfield Bondi shopping mall, which also injured nine people.
Police said earlier Monday that they were examining why the lone assailant in that attack had targeted women while avoiding men, and the killer’s father blamed his son’s frustration at not having a girlfriend.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
