<<Print>>A number of people have been killed and another more than 10 injured after a gunman went on a shooting rampage in a German shopping centre. A major police operation is ongoing in Munich, around the city's Olympic Park, with the force warning people to stay in their homes and avoid public spaces as they don't know where the gunman is.
Terrified shoppers were seen running for their lives from the Munich Olympia Shopping Centre, in the district of Moosach, after hearing gunshots. A video purporting to show the shooter, dressed in black, firing 20 shots has been posted on Twitter. The footage shows him outside a McDonald's directly outside the shopping centre. The area around the Munich Olympia Shopping Centre in the district of Moosach has been sealed off as emergency services try to control the situation.
Police have confirmed that at least one person has died as a result of the incident and German media have reported there may be up to 15 killed. A police spokesman said; 'It is really something big going down.' The force in Munich posted on its website: 'At this time we have a major operation underway. Please avoid the area of the shopping centre.'
First reports said a heavily armed man wandered through the shopping centre opening fire at will.
It is reported that the gunman fled after his shooting spree on the city underground network, which has now been shut down. Police said they are also hunting a second gunman involved in the incident. Photos flashed on to social media sites of at least one body covered by aluminium sheets.
'Stay in your homes. Leave the road!' Polizei München said in a Tweet.
A spokesman for the German police said there was a 'shooting spree'.
An official at the Munich Olympia Shopping Centre declined comment, saying only, 'We are experiencing a problem.'
The shopping centre is next to the Munich Olympic stadium, where the Palestinian militant group Black September took 11 Israeli athletes hostage and eventually killed them during the 1972 Olympic Games.
Thamina Stoll, a university student in Munich, tweeted video of the scene showing people running.
'Helicopter, sirens and people on the street #Munich #shooting #OEZ #München,' she said.
'At least 30 police cars on their way to #Munich #shoppingmall according to local radio station. Area around mall blocked by police.' The shooting comes just days after a teenage asylum seeker went on the rampage with an axe and a knife on a regional train in Germany, injuring five people.
Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said the teenager was believed to be a 'lone wolf' attacker who appeared to have been 'inspired' by the Islamic State group but was not a member of the jihadist network.
It also follows a truck attack in the French Riviera city of Nice after Bastille Day fireworks last week that left 84 people dead.
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