The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the knife attack in Germany's Solingen city that killed three people on Friday. In a statement issued on Saturday, the militant group, on its Telegram account, said the attack was carried out by one of its members "in revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere".
"The perpetrator of the attack on a gathering of Christians in the city of Solingen in Germany yesterday was a soldier of the Islamic State" group, said a statement from the jihadists' Amaq news agency on the Telegram messaging app. The attack was carried out "in revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere", reported news agency AFP, quoting the statement.
At least three people were killed and eight others were wounded in a knife attack at a festival in the Fronhof, a market square in Solingen where live bands were playing as part of a festival marking the city's 650th anniversary. No one has been arrested so far, but the police said they have launched a "major operation" to find the assailant. They said they had detained a 15-year-old and were investigating whether this person was linked to the attacker.
The suspect managed to flee from the crime scene in the turmoil and panic that initially spread after the crime, Deutsche Welle (DW) reported quoting a police spokesperson.
As per media reports, the suspect stabbed passers-by at random with a knife at the festival celebrating the city's 650th anniversary. The festival, billed as the celebration of diversity, began on Friday and was supposed to run through to Sunday. Around 10,000 people attended the festivities. with many people gathered around a stage for live music performances on the Fronhof market square in the city centre.
Most of those wounded are believed to have been attacked directly in front of the stage, as per a report by the German daily Bild, which added that the man appeared to target the throats of his victims. In the wake of the attack, the Solingen has reportedly completely cancelled its 650th-anniversary celebrations.