New Zealand stabbings were 'terror attacks', says Ardern

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said the man who stabbed at least six people in a supermarket was a ‘violent extremist’ known to the police.

The man was a Sri Lankan national and had been living in New Zealand since 2011 and was shot and killed by police after the attack at a Countdown store in Auckland.

Jacinda Ardern told a briefing on Friday: “A violent extremist undertook a terrorist attack on innocent New Zealanders,” adding she had been personally aware of the individual.