Five monks were tied up and left with head injuries after they were assaulted in a church during a robbery.
Two suspects fled the scene after ambushing the monks at the Maria Immaculata Church in the Floridsdorf area of Vienna, Austria.
At least one of their suspects demanded money and valuables during the attack, which happened at 1.30pm on Thursday, according to local police.
Police found the monks tied up, one of them with head injuries, nearly three hours later.
The monks were aged between 56 and 68, and one of the attackers had a foreign accent, the Austria Press Agency reported.
Police wrote on Twitter that, while the precise motive remains unclear, "a possible terror motive can be ruled out.”
Officers were searching for the perpetrators, including in the complex where the incident took place.
They said Thursday evening that they had found nothing in the building.
