Nine people have been killed and 16 injured after a man drove a van into pedestrians on the pavement in Toronto, Canada.

At 13:30 local time (17:30 GMT) a man drove a rented Chevrolet Express van onto the pavement at the busy intersection of Yonge Street and Finch Avenue and struck at least 25 people before fleeing the scene on foot.

Armed Police managed to corner the man several streets away from the incident and managed to detain him without any shots being fired, despite witness reports of him pointing a dark object at officers.

Police have identified a suspect named as 25-year-old Alek Minassian.

It is unclear whether the incident was a deliberate attack.

Toronto Deputy Chief Peter Yuen has called on witnesses to come forward and asked people to avoid the area while investigators examine the scene.

Toronto Chief of Police said: “My condolences to those involved in this incident. I am grateful for the efforts of our police officers and all emergency service partners.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau added: “Our thoughts are with all those affected by the terrible incident at Yonge and Finch in Toronto. Thank you to the first responders working at the scene – we’re monitoring the situation closely.”

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