Police arrest man threatening to blow himself up at Danish asylum center

A man has been arrested after threatening to blow himself up at an asylum center on the Danish island of Funen, according to police. The arrest took place following negotiations with officers.

“The person is on the asylum centre’s roof. Police and emergency workers are on location and the residents of the centre are being evacuated,” police wrote in a press release. 

According to Fyens.dk, the 22-year-old Iranian national was holding something in his hand and seemed to be talking to another man, who was wearing a helmet and standing on a flat roof a few meters away. 

Police have confirmed the man's identity, but have not released his name. Authorities say he lived at a different asylum center in Faaborg.

Officers cordoned off a several hundred meter-long stretch of the road, Fyens.dk reported, adding that a fire brigade was also at the scene.

A flight ban was issued above the asylum center, which applied to all aircraft and drones. It has since been lifted.

The incident took place at Asylcentre Nyborg, an asylum center with a capacity of 500 occupants.

Denmark registered 21,000 asylum applications in 2015, making it one of the main EU destinations for refugees per capita, after Finland, Austria, Germany, and Sweden.