Image source, Reuters
- Author, Writing
- Author Title, BBC News World
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Three people died and eight others were injured after a man attacked festival-goers with a knife in Solingen, western Germany, on Friday.
The attacker stabbed several passers-by at random during the celebration in the streets of the city center. The victims are two men, aged 56 and 67, and a 56-year-old woman.
The attacker fled and shortly afterwards the police began a search operation to find his trail thanks to police helicopters flying over the city.
German police reported on Saturday that a 15 year old young man was arrested in connection with the case and said the suspect’s motives are still unknown, but they did not rule out a terrorist motivation.
At a press conference, local police chief Markus Röhrl declined to give further information about the suspect and confirmed that he would not release any photos of him.
He said the situation at the festival after the attack was “very agitated”, making it difficult to locate the attacker.
It was later reported that a man had been arrested at a refugee compound near the scene of the attack, although no details were given about the person arrested.
Asked about reports that the attacker pointed the knife at the victims’ throats, police confirmed that the attacker was aiming for the victims’ throats and necks.
The group Islamic State claimed responsibility for Saturday’s attack, but did not immediately provide any evidence.
Image source, Reuters
“Shocked, scared and very sad”
The attack This happened around 9:45 p.m. local time. at the festival commemorating 650 years of Solingen.
A witness to what happened, Lars Breitzke, told a local newspaper that he knew something was wrong when he saw a singer on stage with a strange expression on his face.
“And then a person fell just a meter away from me“Yes,” he explained.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz tweeted on Saturday that the suspect in the attack must be “punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
He added that the incident had “deeply shocked” him.
Mayor Tim Kurzbach also addressed the attack overnight, offering his “deepest condolences” to the victims and “all those who had to witness it.”
“Tonight we are all in Solingen shocked, scared and very sad (…) My eyes fill with tears when I think of the people we have lost. I pray for all those who are still fighting for their lives.”
Solingen, a city in North Rhine-Westphalia famous for its steel industry, has about 160,000 inhabitants. It is located about 25 km east of Düsseldorf and northeast of Cologne.
Solingen Festival
Image source, Reuters
The place where the attack took place is a square known as Fronhof, located in the center of the city. At that time, musical artists performed.
It is located near several restaurants along a wide street and close to a shopping center.
The attack came as the city commemorated its 650th anniversary with a celebration called Diversity Celebration.
German newspaper Bild, citing event organisers, said the now-cancelled celebrations were due to run until Sunday and were expected to attract around 80,000 visitors over three days.
Speaking to the BBC, the paper’s deputy editor Solinger Tageblatt, Björn Boch said that at the time of the attack “the city was full of people”estimating that “a few thousand people” attended Friday’s free event.
Image source, Reuters
Banning certain bladed weapons
This latest stabbing incident comes just over a week after Germany’s interior minister called tougher measures against knife crime.
Earlier this month, Nancy Faeser said Germany needed “tougher gun laws and tighter controls” to prevent knife incidents. “Knives are used to commit brutal acts of violence that can cause serious injuries or even death,” she told public broadcaster ARD.
He called for the law to be changed so that only very short-bladed knives are allowed in public.
At present, In Germany, it is permitted to carry knives with a blade length of 12 cm in public..
Faeser wants a reduction to 6 centimeters and a total ban on switchblades, a pocket knife with a spring-loaded retractable blade.
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