The man accused of a suspected terrorist attack in Finland, which left two women dead and eight other people injured, has been named in court.

Police shot and arrested 18-year-old Moroccan Abderrahman Mechkah after he allegedly went on a mass stabbing spree in the city of Turku on Friday (18 August).

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Detectives said he came to Finland as an asylum seeker in 2016.

His alleged crimes are being treated as murder and attempted murder with terrorist intent, a court in Finland said Monday.

He could appear in court via video link from hospital as early as Tuesday.

The attack happened in the Puutori/Market Square area of Turku just after 4pm local time, with police receiving reports of a man attacking passers-by with a knife.

He was shot in the leg three minutes after the alarm was raised, and then detained, police said.

The two victims killed in the attack were both Finnish women. Among those injured were two Swedes, an Italian and a British paramedic.

Investigators believe the attacker had specifically targeted women.

"It seems that the suspect chose women as his targets, because the men who were wounded were injured when they tried to help, or prevent the attacks," said Crista Granroth of Finland's National Bureau of Investigation, according to the BBC. She said six of the eight injured were women.

Among the injured was Hassan Zubier, 45, a paramedic who was born in Dartford, Kent. He was repeatedly stabbed when he tried to help one of the women killed in the attack.

Finnish police arrested five people in a Turku apartment on Friday night as part of their investigation.

"We are investigating the role of these five other people but we are not sure yet if they had anything to do with [the attack]," said Det Supt Markus Laine, of the National Bureau of Investigation.

"We will interrogate them, after that we can tell you more. But they had been in contact with the main suspect."

The attack saw the centre of Turku cordoned off and increased security at Finland's airports and train stations. It comes after the country raised its terror threat level from "low" to "elevated" in June, the second of four levels, due to increased risk of attack by Isis.