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Nine Killed In Munich 'Shooting Rampage'

Nine people have been killed and many more injured in a shooting at a shopping centre in the German city of Munich.

A number of "youths" were among the dead and children have also been shot, police said.

At least three of the 16 injured in the attack are in a "life-threatening" condition.

Police initially feared three gunmen might have been involved but now believe there was only one attacker, using a pistol.

It is understood the attacker, wearing a red backpack, shot himself in the head, taking his own life.

His body was found on a side street near the mall, about two-and-a-half hours after the assault.

Anti-terror robots examined the backpack for explosives.

The gunman has since been identified as an 18-year-old German-Iranian, who had been living in Munich for about two years.

He was not known to police and officers are searching his apartment for clues.

Police say it is unclear whether the attack was motivated by terrorism or was a "shooting rampage" by a disgruntled individual.

US intelligence officials said initial reports from their German counterparts indicated no apparent link between the suspect and Islamic State.

There was some speculation the shootings were orchestrated by a far-right extremist group.

In a statement, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said: "The motives for this abhorrent act have not yet been completely clarified - we still have contradictory clues."

The German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, will meet ministers and intelligence officials on Saturday.

The attack happened on the fifth anniversary of a massacre in Norway by right-wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik.

Despite the uncertainty, supporters of Islamic State celebrated on social media.

"The Islamic state is expanding in Europe," read one tweet.

Investigators said the "acute terror situation" sparked the biggest police operation in Munich for more than a decade.

An alert was sent to smartphones, declaring an "emergency situation".

:: Live: Munich Massacre

The gunman began shooting at a McDonald's restaurant in Hanauer Street near the Olympic Park, before moving to the Olympia-Einkaufszentrum mall.

A woman named Loretta said she was in the restaurant when the pistol-wielding suspect came out of a bathroom and began shooting.

She told CNN: "I come out of the toilet and I hear like an alarm, boom, boom, boom.

"He's killing the children. The children were sitting to eat. They can't run."

Witness Luan Zequiri said he was near the McDonald's when the shooting began.

He told German broadcaster n-tv that he heard the attacker yell an anti-foreigner insult and "there was a really loud scream".

Mr Zequiri said he saw only one attacker, who was wearing jack boots and a backpack.

"I looked in his direction and he shot two people on the stairs," he said.

In a conversation between the gunman and someone on a balcony, the attacker can be heard shouting: "I am German... I was born here."

Employees and customers barricaded themselves inside shops as the attack took place, while more than 2,000 police flooded the area.

Video footage shows shoppers filing through the mall under police guard with their arms raised before lying down on the ground.

An employee who was inside the mall told Reuters by phone that many shots were fired.

The witness said they saw someone who was "so severely injured that he definitely didn't survive".

:: Gunman Opens Fire Outside Munich McDonald's

The entire transport network in Munich was suspended, and the city's main railway station evacuated.

Several highways north of Munich were also sealed off by police.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said: "I am shocked and appalled by the terrible attack unfolding this evening in Munich, and the loss of life."

French President Francois Hollande called the attack "a disgusting act that aims to foment fear in Germany after other European countries.

"Germany will resist. It can count on France's friendship and cooperation."

This is the second attack in Germany in less than a week.

On Monday, a 17-year-old Afghan wounded four people in an axe and knife attack on a train near the Bavarian city of Wuerzberg.

The latest incident happened not far from where Palestinian attackers opened fire in the Olympic Village in 1972, killing 11 Israeli athletes.

Five guerrillas and a police officer were also killed.