Alwaght-At least 49 Muslims have been killed after terrorist attacks at two mosques in Christchurch on New Zealand's South Island.
The terrorist, an ardent supporter of US President Donald Trump, broadcast live footage on Facebook of the gruesome attack on one mosque in the city of Christchurch, mirroring the carnage played out in video games, after publishing a "manifesto" in which he denounced immigrants, calling them "invaders".
The New Zealand Herald says the gunman identified himself as "Brenton Tarrant" - a white, 28-year-old Australian-born man, who livestreamed for 17 minutes as he shot victims in the mosque - and wrote a 37-page manifesto declaring his intentions.
Stuff.co.nz reports that the shooters' rifles had "Alexandre Bissonette" and "Luca Traini" written on them - the names of mosque shooters in Italy and Canada.
New Zealand was placed on its highest security threat level, Ardern said, adding that four people taken into custody held extremist views but had not been on any police watch lists.
"It is clear that this can now only be described as a terrorist attack," Ardern said, call this "one of New Zealand's darkest days".
Police said later three people were in custody and one man in his late 20s had been charged with murder. He will appear in court on Saturday.
The visiting Bangladesh cricket team was arriving for prayers at one of the mosques when the shooting started but all members were safe, a team coach told Reuters.
Police Commissioner Mike Bush said 49 people had been killed in total.
One man who said he was at the Al Noor mosque told media the gunman was white, blond and wearing a helmet and a bulletproof vest. The man burst into the mosque as worshipers were kneeling for prayers.
"He had a big gun ... he came and started shooting everyone in the mosque, everywhere," said the man, Ahmad Al-Mahmoud. He said he and others escaped by breaking through a glass door.
Forty-one people were killed at the Al Noor mosque, seven at a mosque in the Linwood neighbourhood and one died in hospital, police said. Hospitals said children were among the victims.
Shortly before the attack began, an anonymous post on the discussion site 8chan, known for a wide range of content including hate speech, said the writer was going to “carry out an attack against the invaders” and included links to a Facebook live stream, in which the shooting appeared, and a manifesto.
The manifesto cited "white genocide", a term typically used by racist groups to refer to immigration and the growth of minority populations, as his motivation.
Stuff.co.nz reports that the shooters' rifles had "Alexandre Bissonette" and "Luca Traini" written on them - the names of mosque shooters in Italy and Canada.
Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel said she was "shocked beyond words" by the shootings".
All mosques in New Zealand had been asked to shut their doors and armed guards posted at them, police said, adding they were not actively looking for any other "identified suspects".
Political and Islamic leaders across the world condemned the killings.
