Several people were killed or seriously injured in an attack on a church in the northern German city of Hamburg, with an unknown motive, police said on Thursday, Reuters reported.

00:46 According to Focus, the emergency services heard shots fired inside the building. They found several people there. It is not known whether the author of the attack is among them, News.ro reports.

Police say there is no indication that the perpetrator or perpetrators left the scene. Whether this means that the criminals are dead or arrested is not clear, Focus writes.

Earlier, local mass media reported that the attackers fled from the scene of the attack and the police are looking for them.

As Focus writes, at least six dead were found, seven were seriously injured and 17 were lightly injured.

00:06: Bild reported that seven people were killed and eight injured, after Reuters initially reported, citing Focus, that at least six were dead. The attack took place in the church of Jehovah’s Witnessesfrom Deelböge Street. So far, there is no reliable information about the motives of the attack, the police reports.

At around 21:00 (22:00 Romanian time), the federal warning program NINAwarn was alerted by local residents that “one or more unknown criminals shot at some people in the church”.

The perpetrators have not yet been arrested, they fled the scene, Focus Online reports, adding that an ambulance and medics are on the scene.

Hamburg police said in a message on Twitter that a large-scale operation is underway in the Alsterdorf area.

According to several media outlets cited by Deutsche Welle, the attack allegedly took place at the center of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Residents living nearby were warned not to leave their homes during the operation.