The Danish prime minister is assaulted on a Copenhagen square, media reports say

BERLIN, Germany (AP) — Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was assaulted by a man on a square in the capital of Copenhagen, the state news agency Ritzau reported Friday.

Copenhagen police confirmed on X, formerly Twitter, that one person was arrested in the case and an investigation was underway.

There was no immediate word on how the assault happened or if Frederiksen was hurt in any way. The prime minister’s office told the Danish state broadcaster DR that she was “shocked” by the incident.

The reports gave no further details and it’s unclear in what context the assault happened but comes just ahead of the EU parliamentary elections on Sunday. Frederiksen has been campaigning with the Social Democrats’ EU lead candidate, Christel Schaldemose. Media reports said the attack was not linked to a campaign event.

News of the assault was received with shock and condemnation by politicians across the political spectrum inside the small Scandinavian country and abroad.

Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said “an attack on a democratically elected leader is also an attack on our democracy,” while Charles Michel, president of the European Council, condemned on X what he called a “cowardly act of aggression.”