New Zealand stabbings: officials tried for years to deport terrorist prior to Auckland attack, Jacinda Ardern says

Jacinda Ardern says every legal avenue' was used to detain Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen until his refugee status was resolved

New Zealand had tried for years to deport the terrorist who stabbed shoppers in an Auckland supermarket on Friday before being shot dead by the police officers tasked with watching him, the country's prime minister has said.

Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen, a 32-year-old Sri Lankan man, was fighting to keep his refugee status in New Zealand when he carried out the attack, which Jacinda Ardern said was inspired by the Islamic State.