A large-scale police operation is under way in cental Vienna. October 2, 2020.   –   Copyright  Joe Klamar/AFP

Several people have been injured and one person has died in a shooting in central Vienna, according to police.

One suspect was shot dead and a police officer is among the injured, they added.

Austrian interior minister Karl Nehammer said in an interview on ORF that the incident appeared to be a terror attack.

Several suspects armed with rifles were reported at six different locations, police said.

Shots were first fired at 8 pm on Seitenstettengasse – a street near a synagogue – they added.

The incident came just hours before Austria was set to go into a partial coronavirus lockdown.

Oskar Deutsch, President of the Jewish Community of Vienna (IKG), which is the body that represents Vienna’s Orthodox Jewish community, said it was too early to say whether the temple was one of the targets but confirmed there had been “a shooting in the immediate vicinity of the city temple.”

“All parishioners were asked not to enter public streets and to remain in closed rooms until the all-clear from the security authorities, who worked with the IKG security department,” he added.

Deutsch said that both the synagogue in Seitenstettengasse and an office building at the same address were closed at the time police said shots were fired.

Police told people in a tweet to stay away from the city centre and to avoid “public places or public transport”, adding residents should “stay home”.

Vienna public transport is not stopping in the city’s 1st district until further notice.

They asked social media users not to share photos or videos that purported to show the incident because it “endangers both emergency services and the civilian population”.

In videos shared on social media, people were pictured running as what appeared to be gunshots could be heard.

Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig said in a tweet: “We were deeply shocked to receive information about the shooting in the inner city. The pictures are shocking and stunning. A large-scale police operation is currently ongoing.”

Vienna police confirmed that officers were out in force.

Roadblocks have been set up around the centre of Vienna.

Czech police said Monday evening that they were “carrying out random checks on vehicles and passengers” at the country’s border with Austria after the attack.

“Police officers exercise increased supervision over the most important Jewish buildings in the Czech Republic,” the force added in a tweet. “We assure the public that the measures taken are exclusively preventive in nature.”

European leaders condemn the attack

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz condemned the “hideous terrorist attack,” adding: “Our police will take decisive action against the perpetrators.”

“The whole country’s thoughts are with the victims, the injured and their families, to whom I express my deepest condolences,” he added.

“Europe strongly condemns this cowardly act that violates life and our human values,” President of the European Council Charles Michel wrote on Twitter.

This is a breaking news story, our reporters will update it as they verify any information.