Munich police shoot dead 'suspicious' armed man near Israeli consulate on exact anniversary of Olympic massacre

Police confirmed they "fired shots at a suspicious person" carrying a firearm - who was "hit and injured", while Bavaria's interior minister later said the suspect died at the scene after being shot while exchanging fire with officers.

On Thursday afternoon, the suspect was identified as an 18-year-old Austrian national believed to be resident in Austria, whose motive is under investigation, a police spokesman said.

Reacting to the initial footage, German left-wing politician Martina Renner drew attention to the fact the incident took place on the 52nd anniversary of the Munich Olympics massacre on September 5, 1972 - where members of Palestinian terror group Black September killed 12 people, 11 of which were Israeli Olympic team members.

Es ist der Jahrestag des Olympia-Attentat 1972 und in München fallen Schüsse vor dem israelischen Generalkonsulat. https://t.co/ZzKtEu4XTQ

— Martina Renner (@MartinaRenner) September 5, 2024

As well as the Israeli Consulate-General, Karolinenplatz plays host to a number of political offices and museums.

One of those is the headquarters of the Munich Security Conference (MSC), an annual security policy meeting - from where the first reports emerged this morning - while another is the "nsdoku", or Nazi Documentation Centre, a museum about the Nazi regime on the site of the former party's HQ.

Both the nsdoku and Israel's offices require special protection by local police and Israel-employed security personnel, German broadsheet Suddeutsche Zeitung explained.

One local told the outlet that they had heard gunshots and police sirens, alongside shouts of "Run! Run!".

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MSC deputy chairman and CEO Benedikt Franke told Bild: "Our office, which is located right next to the NS Documentation Centre in downtown Munich, is currently cordoned off by the police.

"Our employees are in lockdown. At exactly 9.10am, there was a loud bang. At least a dozen shots were heard. We don't know any more at the moment.

"A large contingent of emergency services is currently deployed on the street."

Police in Munich released a set of statements as the incident unfolded online.

The force initially urged the public to avoid the area, as emergency services - including a police helicopter - flocked to cordon off the square.

Social media users were also told to refrain from sharing "speculation and misinformation" as officers descended on Karolinenplatz.

They later said: "Police officers spotted a person who appeared to be carrying a firearm. The emergency services used their service weapons and the person was hit and injured.

There are currently no indications of any other suspects in connection with the operation. Many forces are on site at the incident site and are clarifying the situation. Further information will follow."

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the protection of Israeli institutions was of the highest priority in the wake of the shooting.

She described the incident as "serious" and said she was in contact with emergency services - but did not want to speculate on further details.