The German police arrested a suspect in the knife attack that resulted in the deaths of three people and left eight injured at a local festival in Solingen. The group Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack, Euractiv said.
The incident occurred on Friday evening during the city’s 650th anniversary celebrations, where three men aged 56 and 67, along with a 56-year-old woman, lost their lives. Of the eight injured, four remain in a life-threatening condition. In the last 24 hours, police have made three arrests related to the incident.
Herbert Reul, the Minister of the Interior for North Rhine-Westphalia, confirmed to the ARD broadcaster on Saturday that the suspected attacker has been apprehended and that evidence has been collected. He did not go into details but stated the investigation is ongoing and that the suspect is currently being interrogated.
Earlier, the Islamic State, in its statement on Telegram, claimed responsibility for the attack in the western German city of Solingen, where the anniversary celebrations were taking place, officials reported. ISIS stated this attack was a form of retaliation for Muslims in Palestine and across the globe, seemingly referencing the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The suspect turned out to be a 26-year-old Syrian who arrived in Germany in December 2022 and received protected immigration status, which is often granted to those fleeing war-torn countries, according to German newspapers Bild and Spiegel. The media indicates that he was not previously known to intelligence services as an extremist.
Reul confirmed that, according to the latest information, the suspect had been residing in a refugee shelter that that police had previously raided, although he did not specify that the arrest took place there. The Düsseldorf police, who are investigating the case, also confirmed the arrest but could not provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
In addition to the primary suspect, police arrested a man during a raid at a shelter for asylum seekers located near the location of the attack on Friday. Markus Caspers, the Düsseldorf prosecutor, reported that another individual, a 15-year-old boy, faced arrest on suspicion of failing to report a crime.
Germany is on heightened alert for possible Islamist attacks. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser stated that since the outbreak of war in Gaza on October 7, the risk of Islamist conspiracies has significantly increased, warning that “the threat posed by Islamist terrorism remains high.”
The attack on Friday took place as thousands gathered in front of the stage on the first evening of a three-day festival. Festival of Diversity began on Friday and was to run through Sunday, but authorities have cancelled the remainder of the festival.
