Woman killed in axe attack at Polish university

A woman has been killed and a man has been severely injured in an axe attack at the University of Warsaw on Wednesday, according to Polish police.

A 22-year-old Polish man has been arrested in connection with the attack which the university has called a “huge tragedy”.

Both victims worked at the university. In a statement, the university said the woman killed had been a member of staff, and the man injured worked in security.

A motive is not yet known for the attack.

Police said the attacker entered the college campus at 18:40 local time (16:40GMT).

From there he entered a college auditorium, according to a spokesperson for the district prosecutor.

Few details have emerged about what then happened.

“We express our great sorrow and sympathy to the family and loved ones,” the rector of the university said in an a statement.

8 May will be a day of mourning for the college, the rector announced.

Another Polish news outlet, Gazeta Wyborcza Daily say that the attacker was a third year law student.

In the aftermath of the attack, reporters from Reuters saw the auditorium cordoned off as police vans gathered around.

The Rector of the University of Warsaw said in a statement that May 8 would be a day of mourning at the institution, calling the attack a “huge tragedy”.

“We express our great sorrow and sympathy to the family and loved ones,” the statement read.