Gunmen Kill One at Blasphemy Debate in Copenhagen

Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilk at a press conference after shots were fired Saturday at an event titled “Art, blasphemy and the freedom of expression.” (Polfoto, Janus Engel)

One man is dead and three police officers are injured after assailants opened fire on a cafe in Copenhagen where a Swedish artist who faced death threats for caricaturing the prophet Muhammad was attending a debate on Islam and free speech, The Guardian reports.

Also present was Francois Zimeray, the French ambassador to Denmark. “They fired on us from the outside. It was the same intention as [the Jan. 7 attack on] Charlie Hebdo except they didn’t manage to get in,” Zimeray told AFP.

“Intuitively I would say there were at least 50 gunshots, and the police here are saying 200. Bullets went through the doors and everyone threw themselves to the floor,” the ambassador added. “We managed to flee the room, and now we’re staying inside because it’s still dangerous. The attackers haven’t been caught and they could very well still be in the neighbourhood.”

Eyewitnesses said the police officers were injured outside the cafe. There was no immediate claim of responsibility, and the deceased victim was a 40-year-old man, not yet unidentified, who was inside the cafe. The gunmen fled the scene by car.