TERROR in Netherlands: Turkish gunman opens fire on morning commuters, 3 DEAD, 9 injured

Police in Utrecht are searching for 37-year-old Gökmen Tanis in connection with the apparent fatal shooting at 24 Oktoberplein in the city. Police released a photo of the man, while simultaneously authorities were investigating the scene of an abandoned car with broadcast reports of a possible explosion threat. The photo published by police is time stamped at 10:41 — about four minutes before the incident on the tram took place.

The first thing cops do is put mosque under special protection. A rare crackpot shooting in New Zealand and mosques  are under special protection during a terrorist incident by a Turk.

Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte said on Monday all efforts were focused on catching the “suspect or suspects” responsible for today’s shooting.

Rutte did not repeat earlier comments by counter-terrorism authorities who suggested the shooting may have a terrorist motive.

He said in a statement: “Our country today has been jolted by an attack in Utrecht.

“Police and prosecutors are looking into what exactly happened. What’s known now is that there was shooting at people sitting in a tram in Utrecht, that there were wounded, and possibly deaths.”

At least three dead
Police says possible terror attack
Police tells all schools to keep doors closed
Increased security all over the city
Police places mosques in the city under special protection

LIVE VIDEO #utrecht #netherlands police special forces are surrounding building where gunmen would been hiding #terrorattack people are asked to stay inside away from windowspic.twitter.com/q9ryAOWD3f

— Storm op zee (@2delavega2000) March 18, 2019

At least three people have been killed and several people injured after a shooting on a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht.

Armed police and three air ambulances were sent to the scene of the incident at a busy traffic intersection just outside the city centre at about 10.45am local time on Monday.

Police appealed to the public to stay away to allow emergency services to do their work.

The gunman is still at large with officers investigating a possible terror motive.

German police ‘on lookout for gunman’

German police say they have increased surveillance on the country’s border with the Netherlands and are on the lookout for the gunman.

Heinrich Onstein, a spokesman for the police in the border state of North Rhine-Westphalia, said police had been added to watch major highways and minor crossings, as well as railway routes.

Police are in close contact with authorities in the Netherlands, he said.

36 minutes ago

Police hunt 37-year-old man

Police are hunting for 37-year-old Gökmen Tanis in connection with the shooting. The public have been warned not to approach him.

Police had initially tweeted that the man’s name was Gökman Tanis, but later issued a correction.

The municipality of Utrecht was telling people to stay indoors and off the street as the police hunt for suspects continued.39 minutes agoMan ‘started shooting wildly’

One witness told Dutch news site NU.nl that “a man started shooting wildly” as multiple shots were fired at the tram stop.​

There were shootings at several locations in the city this morning, and one person has been confirmed dead.

Tanis was born in Turkey, police said. He is sought in connection with the Monday morning shooting that was being investigated as a possible terrorist attack. Authorities were asking that anyone who knows Tanis’s whereabouts contact them directly. “Do not approach him yourself, but immediately call the investigation hotline, 0800-6070,” police said.Meanwhile, a red Renault Clio was found abandoned on Tichelaarslaan near Boomgaardlaan. The location is about five kilometers away from where the shooting took place on a tram in city.

A woman who discovered the car told the broadcaster, “The car had been running for some time, up to three hours with the engine on, the window slightly open and a note hanging from it.” When pressed to describe the note, she added, “I read the last line, but I prefer not to say what it said.”

By 2 p.m., the broadcaster said that there was a threat of explosion at the location. However, authorities had not declared such a threat on official channels as of 2:30 p.m.

Back closer to the site of the shooting, armed police were actively investigating a first-floor flat on Trumanlaan. A large, heavily armed team entered a housing block there, but did not immediately reveal what they had found.