Public security

Mass shootings at mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand

New Zealand police commissioner Mike Bush said the death toll in the two mosque attacks has increased to 49.

The vast majority, 41 people, were killed in the attack on the Deans Avenue mosque shooting, Bush said.

According to the police, one man has already been charged with murder in the wake of the terrorist attacks.

New Zealand is not used to mass shootings of the kind seen at the two mosques in Christchurch on Friday that killed at least 40 people and left 48 injured.

Until Friday, the biggest massacre in the country’s history happened 30 years ago, when a man named David Gray went on a shooting rampage, killing 13 people.

Following the attack, the nation’s gun laws -- which were first passed in 1983 -- came under scrutiny. The ensuing debate led to a 1993 amendment on the regulation of military-style semi-automatic firearms.

The country’s gun laws are still considered to be relatively relaxed compared to non-US nations -- gun owners do need a license but they aren’t required to register their guns.

While authorities do not know exactly how many legally or illegally owned firearms are currently in circulation in New Zealand, estimates put the number at about 1.2 million, according to New Zealand Police.