UPDATED: Manhunt as one dead, two critical after ‘random’ attack

One man has died and two other people are seriously injured following a “random” series of stabbings in Birmingham city centre.

Five others were also injured in what West Midlands Police have described as a “major incident” overnight – and a murder investigation has been launched.

One unknown male suspect is being sought but no arrests have been made, Chief Superintendent Steve Graham told a news conference on Sunday, adding that the public should remain “alert”.

There is no suggestion of terrorism, gang involvement, or that the stabbings were a hate crime, he said, describing it as a “random attack with no clear motive”.

“There have been a series of incidents in that Hurst Street area of the city, they look to be related but the motivation for them is not yet understood,” he said.

“We can confirm that at approximately 12:30am today we were called to reports of a stabbing in Birmingham city centre,” West Midlands Police said earlier in a statement. “A number of other stabbings were reported in the area shortly after.

“We are aware of a number of injured people, but at the moment we are not in a position to say how many or how serious.”

Emergency services were working together at the scene to ensure that those who were injured were receiving medical care, the statement said.

Cordons were in place and there were some road closures in the city.

The BBC said the cordon was near the area known as the Gay Village in the centre of Birmingham, where many people had been seated at outdoor tables eating and drinking.

“At this early stage it would not be appropriate to speculate on the causes of the incident,” the police said.