An Iraq-born was arrested in Germany on Friday after he stabbed several people in a moving train in the western part of the country. The police are investigating a possible Islamic extremist motive.?

Herbert Reul, the interior minister of the state in which the attack took place, said six people were injured, as per Deutsche Welle. The minister added that the man began attacking fellow passengers “randomly and arbitrarily”.?

There were approximately 270 passengers on the train, Reul said.?

A police officer who happened to be among the passengers overpowered the 31-year-old suspect with the help of two other passengers, state police confirmed. While it has been reported the man was born in Iraq, his nationality is not yet clear.

Reul described the incident as “a gruesome crime that was stopped in an enormous act of courage.”

The police confirmed the casualties were being treated at local hospitals and that none of them was in critical condition.

Reul said the suspect was already known to authorities. However, he added that authorities have not confirmed that the suspect had an Islamist motive for the attack.

(With AP inputs)