Islamist motivation “likely” after deadly knife attack in Germany

The attack on Friday in the German city of Würzburg by a Somali, who killed three women with a knife, is part of a « probable » context “Islamist”, said Tuesday, June 29 the police and the prosecution in charge of the investigation.

“The Bavarian Central Office for Extremism and Terrorism took charge of the investigation, as an Islamist motive is likely”, the Bavarian State Prosecutor’s Office and the regional criminal police said in a joint statement.

“This thesis is currently supported by the two cries of“Allah Akbar” [Allah est le plus grand] heard by witnesses during the execution of the crime and by a reference to the “jihad” » made by the suspect during his hospitalization in a clinic in Würzburg after his arrest. However, the federal anti-terrorism prosecution is not seized of the investigation at this stage.

“So far, no evidence of propaganda material or other extremist content has been found on the suspect”, further specifies the press release.

Three dead and seven injured

The investigation is currently focused on examining the items, including two cell phones, which were seized from the apartment of the 24-year-old Somali who arrived in Germany in 2015. The young man’s mental health is also in question. .

With a residence permit in Germany, he has had trouble leaving twice since the beginning of the year with the justice which had ordered his provisional internment in a psychiatric hospital.

Friday, the attacker, barefoot and armed with a long kitchen knife, had successively attacked ten people, some of them touching the head and neck, in a department store in Würzburg at the end of the afternoon.

Three women died instantly. Six other people, including a child, were seriously injured but are now out of danger. A seventh victim was slightly injured.