Paramaribo, Suriname: A man fatally stabbed nine people, including five children, overnight in Suriname’s capital, Paramaribo, police said on Sunday.

The suspect was wounded and arrested during the incident.

According to a police statement, “During the night from Saturday, December 27, to Sunday, December 28, a male individual killed four adults and five children with a sharp object. A sixth child and an adult were seriously injured and were transported to the hospital.”

The statement added that officers had to open fire on the suspect, wounding him in the legs. He is currently hospitalised.

The suspect had an argument with his wife over the phone before stabbing one of the victims, his 11-year-old daughter, 44 times in the kitchen of their home, local media reported.

Officers who arrived on the scene had to open fire on the suspect, as "he attacked police with a sharp object," the statement said.

The man sustained a gunshot wound to the leg and is hospitalised under police supervision, police said without identifying him.

"Further details regarding the true circumstances of this tragic attack will follow," the statement concluded.