German police say attacker who wounded Spanish tourist wanted to 'kill Jews'
Authorities say the perpetrator of the stabbing attack, one day before the elections, is a Syrian refugee
BerlinThe young Syrian who stabbed a Spanish tourist in the neck, seriously injuring him at the Berlin Holocaust Memorial, on Friday wanted to "kill Jews," according to German police. After the attack, the victim, a Spaniard in his 30s who was visiting the German capital, was put into a coma and underwent emergency surgery. His life is not in danger, according to German authorities. The Basque government's Minister of the Interior, Bingen Zupiria, confirmed that the victim is from Bilbao.
"According to the information available so far, in particular following the statements made by the accused to the police, it seems that the plan to kill Jews had been in the works for weeks. In this context, the location of the crime would also have been chosen," explained the Berlin police, adding that "there seems to be a connection."
At the time of his arrest, the alleged attacker was carrying in his backpack "a prayer rug, a Koran, a note with verses from the Koran dated yesterday and the weapon allegedly used, which points to a religious motivation," the police said. So far there is no evidence of links between the attacker and other people or organisations.
The 19-year-old, identified by the German press as Wasim al-M., allegedly attacked the Basque tourist from behind with the knife. The attack took place at around 6:00 p.m. on Friday in the middle of the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, in the heart of Berlin. The attacker then fled the scene. The police cordoned off the area and began searching for the attacker. Several people who witnessed the events were treated on site by the Berlin fire brigade due to the psychological shock caused by the scene.
At 8.45pm, the young Syrian man approached the police, who, seeing that his hands and trousers were stained with blood, arrested him. The detainee, a resident of Leipzig, is believed to have arrived in Germany in 2023 as an unaccompanied minor refugee, i.e. without his parents. After applying for asylum, he was granted asylum, and is therefore legally residing in Germany.
Wasim, who has been cooperative with the police, will be examined for mental illness. The young Syrian has no criminal record in Berlin and is not known to either the police or the sister judiciary.
Impact on the elections?
The stabbing took place on the eve of Sunday's general election in Germany, where immigration is a decisive issue, having become the biggest concern for Germans according to all polls. The Berlinale is also taking place in the city these days. The Berlin International Film Festival, which also ends on Sunday, is taking place at Potsdamer Platz, 700 metres away from the site of the attack.
The Holocaust Memorial, which was inaugurated on 10 May 2005, was designed by the American architect of Jewish origin Peter Eisenman. The memorial, which occupies an area of 19,073 m2, is made up of 2,710 grey concrete steles of different heights, coated with a product that protects it from graffiti.