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| Austria: Syrian Asylum Seeker kills one, injures others in stabbings | ||||||||
| 2025-02-16 | ||||||||
| [BBC] A 14-year-old boy has died and four people have been wounded in a knife attack in Austria. It happened at around 16:00 local time (15:00 GMT) near the main square of Villach, a southern town close to the border with Italy and Slovenia. The suspect is a 23-year-old Syrian asylum seeker and has been detained, AFP news agency reported citing a police official. "A man randomly attacked passers-by with a knife," police spokesman Rainer Dionisio told AFP. A delivery worker who drove his vehicle at the attacker helped prevent more injuries, the police spokesman told ORF, Austria's national broadcaster. Police have not ruled out a second attacker being involved, ORF added. Austrian media reported the suspect, whose identity has not been confirmed by police, may have had a valid residence permit. The broadcaster said two of the four people injured were in a serious condition. Any motive or link between the knifeman and five victims are not yet known, though ORF reported extremism police had been drafted in to investigate. Governor Peter Kaiser of Carinthia - the region where Villach is located - described the attack as an "unimaginable atrocity".
According to police, the attack happened shortly before 4:00 pm near the main square. Witnesses reported that the man randomly stabbed several passers-by before being stopped by a 42-year-old food delivery driver, also from Syria, who hit the suspect with his car. Police arrested the attacker at the scene.
Authorities have not yet determined a motive. Police did say the man was carrying valid asylum documentation when he was arrested. They are also looking into witness reports the man shouted an Islamist call to prayer while carrying out the attack.
Over the past two years, the number of asylum seekers has decreased significantly. In 2022, applications peaked at over 100,000, while approximately 59,000 individuals sought asylum in 2023. Several European countries, among them Austria, said in December they are suspending decisions on asylum claims by Syrian nationals because of the unclear political situation in their homeland following the fall of Bashar Assad.
COURAGEOUS FOOD DELIVERY DRIVER HITS THE PERPETRATOR OF THE CRIME The elite Cobra police unit is alerted. But things could have been even worse if a courageous eyewitness, himself a Syrian, had not intervened. The food delivery driver hits the suspect with his car: "He was heading towards the city center, there were children on the street. I couldn't let that happen. I have children of my own!" Meanwhile, police and ambulance vehicles race to the scene. What initially looks like a degenerate argument could actually have been a planned act of terrorism. Shocked eyewitnesses describe how the 23-year-old stabbed him "laughing". "As things stand at the moment, it's a good thing that the witness hit the perpetrator," says Dionisio. The perpetrator is said to have shouted "Allahu Akbar". The recognized Syrian asylum seeker - who has so far been inconspicuous to the police - also showed the raised index finger, also notorious as an IS gesture, in circulating pictures. Whether there is an Islamist motive behind the knife terror is now the subject of intensive investigations, including by the local state security service. The suspect's contacts are being closely scrutinized. A manhunt is currently underway throughout Carinthia under the direction of the State Office for State Protection and the State Office of Criminal Investigation.
The suspected perpetrator of a deadly knife attack in the southern Austrian town of Villach on Saturday had sworn allegiance to Islamic State and had its flag in his apartment, Austrian officials said on Sunday. At a press conference in Villach, the police chief for the state of Carinthia, Michaela Kohlweiss, said she could confirm an oath of allegiance. She and Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said the ISIS flag had been found in his apartment. The 23-year-old suspect, who was detained shortly after the stabbing, is a Syrian asylum seeker with a residence permit in Austria. The assailant, named in reports as Ahmad G., stabbed six passersby, killing a 14-year-old and injuring five others, in what police said was a random attack.
“Finally, we would like to emphasize: Anyone who causes strife and disturbs the peace of society does not represent the Syrians who have sought and received protection here,” the statement concluded. Villach, a popular tourist destination near the borders of Italy and Slovenia, is known for its laid-back atmosphere, which blends Mediterranean and Alpine traditions. The city hosts annual carnival processions in March and an event on Saturday was canceled in the wake of the attack. | ||||||||
| Posted by:q |
| #2 The authorities named the man and admit he rapidly radicalized, then attacked in the name of ISIS. Also, the partial name Ahmad G. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2025-02-16 13:43 |
| #1 The perpetrator is said to have shouted "Allahu Akbar". The recognized Syrian asylum seeker - who has so far been inconspicuous to the police - also showed the raised index finger, also notorious as an IS gesture, in circulating pictures. The picture of the grinning killer can be found here (no blood or gore.) Whether there is an Islamist motive behind the knife terror is now the subject of intensive investigations, including by the local state security service. Pay no attention to the "Allahu Akbar" and "Tauhid Finger" behind the curtain 'state security service' spokesman Quincy Magoo admonished the public... |
| Posted by: Elmerert Hupens2660 2025-02-16 04:34 |