A gunman opened fire on two shisha bars in the western German city of Hanau, killing at least eight people and injuring several others, police say.

In both places targeted on Wednesday night the clientele were reported to have been predominantly Kurdish.

The suspect was found dead at his home along with the body of his mother.

Federal prosecutors are treating the attack as terrorism, with officials saying there is evidence the gunman was a far-right extremist.

Police say the suspect killed himself. The Bild tabloid reports he was a German citizen with a firearms licence, and that ammunition and gun magazines were found in his car.

According to Bild, he expressed far-right views in a letter of confession and a video but this has not been confirmed officially.

The shootings took place around 22:00 local time (21:00 GMT) on Wednesday, and the first target was the Midnight shisha bar in the city centre of Hanau. Witnesses reported hearing about a dozen gunshots, and at least three people were killed.

The suspect then reportedly fled in a dark car to the Kesselstadt neighbourhood and opened fire at the Arena Bar & Cafe, where at least five people were killed.

Shisha bars are places where people gather to smoke a pipe known as shisha or hookah. Traditionally found in Middle Eastern and Asian countries they are also popular in many other parts of the world.

BBC