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Vienna shooter was IS sympathizer, interior minister says

On Monday night, shooting occurred at six locations in Vienna

VIENNA, November 3. /TASS/. At least one terrorist who has opened fire on pedestrians in Vienna had sympathies for the Islamic State (IS, outlawed in Russia), Austria’s Federal Minister of the Interior Karl Nehammer reported on Tuesday.

"Yesterday we survived an attack of at least one Islamist terrorist. A situation we have not experienced in Austria for decades. The identified criminal was armed with a belt with explosives which turned out to be fake and a rifle. The criminal had sympathies for the IS terrorist group," he said at a press conference in Vienna.

In Vienna on Monday night, shooting occurred at six locations, including a site near a synagogue. Three people were killed, 15 were wounded, including one police officer. One of the shooters was shot and killed by police.

Austrian authorities called the attack a terrorist act. Residents were recommended to avoid public places. A large-scale special operation on search and apprehension of perpetrators is underway in the city.

On December 29, 2014, the Russian Supreme Court declared the Islamic State - IS - (before 2014 - the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIS) a terrorist organization. The extremist organization’s activities are outlawed in Russia.