At least 1 killed, several injured in restaurant explosion in Germany

At least one person has been killed and nine others injured after an explosion struck a restaurant in the south German city of Ansbach, Bavaria.

The incident took place in the central part of the city, close to an area in which a music festival took place at the weekend, Suddeutsche Zeitung reported. Police have cordoned off the area around the restaurant and are conducting a crime scene investigation.

A spokesman for the Bavarian interior minister said that the explosion in the Eugene Weinstube restaurant was a “deliberate” act rather than an accident.

“At present we assume it is not an accident," the spokesman said.

#Germany - 2 deads, 9 injured after explosion in #Ansbach restaurant https://t.co/QAtaKQxXEY pic.twitter.com/xSx0OXfg9e

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Initial reports indicated that a gas leak may have caused the incident, but the mayor of the city, Carda Seidel, announced that authorities believe it was triggered by an improvised explosive device.

According to media reports, the explosion occurred in front of a restaurant shortly after 10:00pm local time. A music festival nearby was forced to end and around 2,500 visitors were evacuated.

Police and rescue workers are currently engaged in a large-scale operation. Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann is en route to the area, according to his spokesman.

Ansbach is located in the German state of Bavaria, some 40km (25 miles) from Nuremberg and around 150 km (93 miles) northwest of Munich.