A 25-year-old man armed with a small axe killed four children when he attacked a nursery in Brazil.
At least four children between the ages of three and five are injured and have been taken to hospital. The dead children were aged between five and seven.
The man has been arrested in the southern city of Blumenau in the state of Santa Catarina. He turned himself in to authorities after the atrocity and did not appear to have any connection to the nursery.
Local security chief, Marcio Alberto Filippi, said that the attacker scaled a wall to enter the private nursey, named Cantinho do Bom Pastor.
President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, called the attack a “monstrosity”, dubbing it an “unacceptable, absurd act of hate and cowardice” against “innocent, defenceless children” in a Twitter post.
Santa Catarina’s governor Jorginho Mello confirmed the killings in the city on his Twitter account, saying: “May God comfort the hearts of all families in this moment of deep pain.”
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Attacks on schools and nurseries are uncommon in Brazil but have occurred more often in recent years.
Last week, a 13-year-old student in Sao Paulo stabbed a teacher, killing her, and also wounded several others.
Blumenau, a city of 366,000 people, is famous for its annual Oktoberfest festival.
