A 19-year-old Syrian refugee has been arrested in connection with the stabbing of a Spanish tourist at Berlin’s Holocaust memorial. The incident occurred just a day before Germany’s national election, in which immigration has become a key issue.
Prosecutors confirmed that the suspect had been planning to target Jewish people for several weeks. They stated that the attack appeared to be motivated by the ongoing Middle East conflict.
Details of the Attack
The stabbing took place around 6 p.m. on Friday, and the suspect was arrested nearby approximately three hours later. Authorities noted that his hands and trousers were covered in blood, and he had a suspected weapon in his backpack. Additionally, the suspect was carrying a Koran and a prayer rug at the time of his arrest.
The suspect arrived in Germany in 2023 as an unaccompanied minor and had no prior criminal record. He was unknown to the police before this attack.
Victim’s Condition
The 30-year-old Spanish man who was stabbed required emergency surgery after sustaining injuries to his head and neck. Prosecutors reported that he was placed in an induced coma but was no longer in life-threatening condition.
Election Tension and Rising Migrant Attacks
This incident comes just one day before Germany’s national elections. The far-right, anti-immigration party, AfD, is expected to perform strongly, and recent migrant-related attacks have been fueling the party’s rise in support.
In the past month alone, Germany has seen several attacks by migrants. In Munich, a car driven into a crowd killed a woman and her two-year-old daughter. A 24-year-old Afghan asylum seeker was arrested in connection with the incident. Another Afghan national was detained for the stabbing deaths of a toddler and a 41-year-old man in Aschaffenburg last month.
Additionally, in December, a Saudi man killed six people when he drove into a crowd at a Christmas market in Magdeburg.
Prosecutors’ Findings
Prosecutors have stressed that there is no evidence linking the Berlin stabbing suspect to any extremist groups or to the other recent attacks. The suspect is set to appear before an investigating judge on Saturday.
Germany’s Migrant Crisis and Political Implications
Germany has taken in over one million migrants since 2015-2016, mostly from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq, many of whom were fleeing war and instability. The growing tension surrounding migrant-related violence is influencing political discourse as the election approaches.
