Three killed as truck crashes through crowds in Stockholm

A truck has ploughed through crowds in the centre of Stockholm with early reports of at least three people killed, local media said.

The haulage vehicle rammed into pedestrians on a street outside a department store around 15:00 local time, with dozens being injured in the incident.

Armed police rushed to scene outside Ahlens Mall in Drottninggatan, one of the Swedish capital's main shopping districts.

Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven has said that details released so far would point towards a "terror attack".

"Sweden has been attacked," Lofven said in the aftermath of the incident.

The city's underground system and other public transport links have been shut while police investigate the attack.

"Police are on location securing the area. People have been injured but we cannot give a number of injuries at this time," a police spokesperson said.

The beer company which owned the truck said in a statement on Friday that the vehicle had been hijacked earlier in the day. Spendrups said its lorry had been stolen while making a delivery to a restaurant in the city.

Several media outlets are also reporting a separate incident in Stockholm in which shots were fired, but it is not clear whether the two incidents are connected.