Bandung, IndonesiaSentinel.com — Several people were killed and some others injured by an unknown knife attack at a festival in the city of Solingen in western Germany on Friday, August 23. According to the German police, at least three people were killed and four others wounded in the attack.
Witnesses alerted the police to an unknown perpetrator attacking several people with a knife on a central square, the Fronhof, at 9.30 p.m. local time. The police then hunted for the unknown assailant hours after he killed and wounded people.
“Both victims and witnesses are currently being questioned. The police are currently searching for the perpetrator with a large team,” the police said.
The man had attacked multiple people with a knife, but the motive remained unclear. Germany’s interior minister, Nancy Faeser, said security authorities were doing everything they could to catch the person and investigate the background behind the attack.
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Police had closed off the square on Saturday, while some passersby mourned for the victim by placing candles and flowers outside the barricades.
Solingen Mayor Tim-Oliver Kurzbach commented on the incident to journalists on Saturday morning. “We are full of shock and grief,” he said.
The Knife Attack Occured During Festival
There was a festival commemorating the 650th anniversary of the city in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia when the attack occurred. The “Festival of Diversity,” which began on Friday, was supposed to run through Sunday, with several stages in central streets offering attractions such as live music, cabarets, and acrobatics.
The German musician known as “Topic” claimed that at the time of the incident, he was performing on a nearby stage. According to what he wrote on Instagram, he was informed about what had happened but asked to carry on “to avoid causing a mass panic attack.”
After being ordered to stop, he said, “We hid in a nearby store while police helicopters circled above us since the attacker was still on the run.” The city then canceled the rest of the festival after the attack and commenced immediate searching.
(Raidi/Agung)
