Medics with a stretcher near the al-Noor islamic center mosque where a gunman, armed with multiple weapons, went on a shooting spree in the town of Baerum, an Oslo suburb. (AFP)
One person was injured during an armed attack at a mosque in Norway on Saturday, police said, adding that members of the congregation had overpowered the gunman and stopped the shooting.
An older man sustained light injuries, police told a news conference, but said it was too early to say if the wounds were caused by the gunshots or sustained during the attempt to restrain the gunman.
An initial statement by the police had said one person was shot in the attack. The shooting is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, police said on Sunday.
“We’re investigating this as an attempt at carrying out an act of terrorism,” assistant chief of police Rune Skjold told a news conference.
The suspected attacker at the al-Noor Islamic Centre near the country's capital was described as “a young white man” who appeared to have acted alone, the police added.
“He is around 20 years old, a Norwegian citizen from the area,” assistant chief of police Rune Skjold told Reuters.
“The man carried two shotgun-like weapons and a pistol. He broke through a glass door and fired shots,” mosque director Irfan Mushtaq told TV2.
The shooter, who wore body armor and a helmet, was overpowered by members of the mosque before police arrived, Mushtaq added.
Only three people were present in the mosque at the time of the attack, preparing for Sunday's celebration of the Eid-al-Adha festival, which up to 1,000 people had been expected to attend, mosque spokesman Waheed Ahmed told Reuters.
The mosque earlier this year implemented extra security measures following the massacre of more than 50 people at two New Zealand mosques by a suspected right-wing extremist.
