At least three Bangladeshis were killed and seven others injured in New Zealand’s worst terror attacks on Friday that claimed 49 lives, Bangladeshi media reported.

At least 49 worshippers were killed and 20 others injured in attacks on the Al Noor Mosque in central Christchurch and the Linwood Mosque in the city’s outer suburb. The gunman at one mosque was an Australian-born citizen and has been described as an extremist, right-wing, violent terrorist.

It was not immediately clear how many attackers were involved, but New Zealand police said three men had been taken into custody.The Bangladeshis who died in the attacks have been identified as Dr Abdus Samad, a professor of Lincoln University in New Zealand, his wife and another woman, Hosne Ara Farid, the website said.

“They went to that mosque to attend Friday prayers. The families began to call them by phone as they did not return home. Later, the families were informed that they have been hospitalised after being shot,” Bhuiyan said.Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Shahidul Huq said Dhaka was in touch with the New Zealand government.

Bangladesh cricket team players in Christchurch narrowly escaped the attack as they were going to the Masjid Al Noor mosque to offer prayers. The team members were quickly escorted back to their hotel.

In the aftermath of the terror attack, the New Zealand Cricket board announced that the third Test match between New Zealand and Bangladesh scheduled to start on Saturday has been cancelled.

Bangladesh does not have an embassy in New Zealand. The Bangladesh embassy in Australia is in contact with New Zealand’s government to acquire updates on the attacks, the Dhaka Tribune reported.

In a statement, the High Commission said it directly and through the honorary consul of Bangladesh in Auckland disseminated messages to the Bangladeshis living in New Zealand in general and Christchurch in particular to remain calm, stay indoors, avoid places of congregation and obey the instructions of law enforcers.