March 10, 2023 — 4:06 P.M.

According to a statement issued by Hamburg Police, “A 35-year-old German is strongly suspected of having entered a church hall in the Hamburg district of Alsterdorf last night and, according to current information, injuring 16 people – some of them fatally – by firing a handgun. It appears that the suspect then committed suicide using the same weapon.”

Of the 16 injured, police report that “seven people, ages 33 to 60, including the 35-year-old suspect and an unborn child (28 weeks), have died. The 33-year-old mother survived with serious injuries. In addition, three people (45, 38 and 22) suffered life-threatening injuries; three others (32, 26 and 22) suffered serious injuries; and one man (32) suffered minor injuries.”

Please pray for the injured and for the families and friends of all involved.

March 9, 2023 — 9:53 P.M.

German media outlets are reporting six or seven fatalities after a gunman opened fire in a Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall in Hamburg, Germany.

Police arrived at the Jehovah’s Witness meeting place after receiving reports of gunfire, the BBC reports.

According to the police spokesman Holger Vehren, when the officers arrived, they found several people “seriously injured by firearms, some of the fatally.”

Police believe the gunman to be among those found dead in the building, according to BBC News. “The officers also heard a shot from the upper part of the building and went upstairs, where the also found a person. So far we have no indications that any perpetrators fled.” Investigations are ongoing.

Police are reporting that “so far, there is no reliable information on the motive” of the attack. “All we know is that several people have died here, several people have been injured, they have been taken to hospitals,” Vehren said.

Hamburg Mayor Peter Tschentscher tweeted out his condolences to the families of the victims and said that “emergency services are working flat out to track down the perpetrator(s) and to clarify the background.”