Anti-terrorism prosecutor takes over German knife-attack case

Forensics officers stand behind a smashed stall on the market square in Mannheim, Germany, Friday, May 31, 2024. An assailant with a knife attacked and wounded several people in a central square in the southwestern German city of Mannheim on Friday, police said. Police shot the attacker, who also was hurt. (AP)

• A 25-year-old Afghan is accused of attacking people with a knife at an anti-Islam rally in the western city of Mannheim

BERLIN: Anti-terrorism prosecutors in Germany will take over the investigation into a knife attack in Mannheim that killed a police officer, a spokeswoman told AFP on Monday.
She said the office took on the case due to the “singular importance” of the attack, which sparked alarm in Germany.
A 25-year-old Afghan is accused of attacking people with a knife at an anti-Islam rally in the western city of Mannheim.
A police officer, 29, died on Sunday after being repeatedly stabbed during the attack. Mannheim police said he was a married father of two.
Five people taking part in a rally organized by Pax Europa, a campaign group against radical Islam, were wounded in the attack.
The suspect faces possible charges of murder, attempted murder and five counts of serious bodily harm, the spokeswoman said.
Police said an officer shot and wounded the attacker. The suspect underwent surgery and could not yet be interrogated.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was “deeply saddened” by the death of the police officer following the “terrible attack.”
Several government officials pointed to a suspected terrorist motive.
“We must defend ourselves against Islamist terrorism with determination,” Finance Minister Christian Lindner told German daily Bild.
Germany has been on high alert for possible Islamist attacks since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war on October 7.
The country’s domestic intelligence chief warned that the risk of such assaults is “real and higher than it has been for a long time.”
The country has also seen a spate of attacks on politicians at work or on the campaign trail ahead of EU elections on June 9.
President Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned last week that Germans “must never get used to violence in the battle of political opinions.”