23-year-old man stabs 5 people in Austria, killing 1 in what police describe as a random attack
NBC5 days ago
Austria Links Fatal Stabbing to IS
Above: Austria's Interior Minister Gerhard Karner places a candle on Feb. 16, 2025 at the site where a man randomly attacked passers-by with a knife and stabbed to death a teenager and wounded five other people in Villach, Austria. Image copyright: Gerd Eggenberger/APA/AFP via Getty Images
The Facts
Authorities in Austria told a press conference on Sunday that the suspect in a fatal stabbing had sworn allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) after becoming radicalized online, and that a flag of the group had been found in his apartment.
This comes as eyewitnesses reported that the suspect — a 23-year-old asylum seeker from Syria identified as Ahmad G. — shouted "Allahu Akbar" and made hand gestures associated with IS in the attack on Saturday.
He has been charged with murder and attempted murder after killing a 14-year-old boy and wounding five others aged between 15 and 36 — three of whom were in intensive care on Sunday — in an apparent random attack on passers-by in the main square of Villach, a village bordering Italy and Slovenia.
The Spin
Right narrative
This jihadist attack in Austria comes as a great shock, but not as a surprise. After all, incidents in neighboring Germany as well as the foiled attack at the Taylor Swift concert in Vienna should have raised alarms. It's about time for Austria to adopt stricter asylum laws and protect its citizens.
Left narrative
It's senseless to blame the entire Syrian diaspora community for the isolated actions of an extremist individual, especially as another Syrian national was the one who heroically brought him down. Like many other migrants, Syrians fled their homeland seeking safety and peace and are grateful to have found that in Austria.
Political split
LEFT
RIGHT
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