Teenager detained after 2 killed in a knife attack at shopping centre in Czech Republic

Police officers stand guard in a shopping area in Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic, at the site where two women have died in a knife attack, Thursday, Feb 20, 2025. (Josef Costarek/CTK via AP)

PRAGUE (AP) — Two women have died in a knife attack on Thursday at a shopping centre in the Czech Republic, officials said.

Police say they detained a teenage suspect in connection with the stabbings in a store in the city of Hradec Kralove, some 100 kilometres east of Prague.

Reports initially said the victims had been injured, one of them seriously, but police later said both had died. They were not identified.

A 16-year-old Czech national was detained by police about one kilometre (0.6 miles) from the scene, shortly after the attack. A knife was found nearby.

Prime Minister Petr Fiala offered his condolences to the relatives of the dead.

“What has happened in Hradec Kralove today is an absolutely incomprehensible and horrible act,” he posted on X.

The motive for the attack was not immediately known.

Police say the situation was under control and there was no danger to the public. No other details were immediately available.

The Associated Press