Both suspects were arrested in a foiled plot Attack on Taylor Swift show Austrian authorities said Thursday that two terrorists in Vienna appeared to be inspired by the Islamic State group and al-Qaeda, and that investigators had found bomb-making materials in one of their homes. One of the two confessed that he was planning to kill “as many people as possible outside the concert venue,” officials said.
Three sold-out concerts on Wednesday were cancelled because of the conspiracy. Devastating Swifties People came from all over the world, many of them having spent thousands of euros (dollars) on travel and accommodation in Austria’s expensive capital city, to attend the Eras Tour show at the Ernst Happel Stadium, which was empty on Thursday morning.
Concert organisers said they expected more than 65,000 fans for each concert inside the stadium and more than 30,000 outside, where authorities said the suspects planned to launch the attack. According to Austria’s Interior Minister Gerhard Karner, the foiled attack was planned for Thursday or Friday.
Taylor Swift fans leave bracelets on a tree and cheer others as they gather at Happel Stadium following the cancellation of three Taylor Swift concerts after the government confirmed a planned attack on the venue, Vienna, Austria August 8, 2024 | Photo credit: Elizabeth Mandel
Authorities said the main suspect, 19, confessed he began planning the attack last month, and that just weeks earlier he uploaded a pledge of allegiance to the Islamic State group’s current leader to the Internet.
“He had clearly been radicalised towards Islamic State and thought it was right to kill infidels,” said Omar Hazawi-Pirchner, head of the State Security and Intelligence Directorate.
Hajawi-Pirchner said the suspect had planned to use knives or homemade explosives in the attack.
Franz Ruf, director general for public security at the Interior Ministry, said investigators found chemical substances and technical equipment during a raid on the suspect’s home in Ternitz, south of Vienna, that pointed to “concerted preparatory actions.”
Authorities said they also found Islamic State group and al-Qaeda material at the home of the second suspect, who is 17. The suspect, who has so far declined to talk, was hired just days earlier by a company that provides unspecified services at the venue for the concert. The 19-year-old is an Austrian of North Macedonian descent. The 17-year-old is an Austrian of Turkish and Croatian descent.
North Macedonia’s Interior Ministry issued a statement on Thursday saying it had received a request from Austria to investigate the 19-year-old man.
The two teenagers were arrested on Tuesday. Neither of their names was released in accordance with Austrian privacy rules.
Authorities said the suspects had made apparent recent social changes. One 19-year-old had quit his job but said he “still had big plans,” while the other broke up with his girlfriend. Neither of the suspects had tickets to any of the shows, Hajawi-Pirchner said.
General view outside Happel Stadium after Taylor Swift’s three concerts this week were cancelled after the government confirmed a planned attack on the stadium, Vienna, Austria, August 8, 2024 | Photo credit: Elizabeth Mandel
Karner said Austria’s intelligence service had worked closely with foreign intelligence services to capture the two teenagers. He did not identify the services, but said the help was needed because Austrian investigators, unlike some foreign services, cannot legally monitor text messages.
Carner said no other suspects were being sought, although police have questioned a 15-year-old boy who was in contact with the two suspects.
“The situation is serious. But we can also say that a tragedy was averted,” he said.
Concert organiser Barracuda Music said in a post on Instagram late Wednesday that it “had no choice but to cancel three scheduled shows for the safety of everyone.”
Barracuda said all tickets would be refunded. The same message was posted below the Vienna dates on Swift’s ticket. official websiteMeanwhile, Austrian rail operator OeBB said it would refund fans for unused train tickets to concerts.
Swift has not spoken publicly about the storyline or the canceled shows. “Taylor Nation,” a verified Instagram page largely run by her team, reposted Barracuda Music’s announcement in a “story” that’s only visible for 24 hours. Her main account hasn’t posted anything.
Swifties fix bracelets on a tree in the city center in Vienna on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024. Organizers of three Taylor Swift concerts at Vienna’s stadium this week canceled them on Wednesday after authorities announced arrests for an apparent conspiracy to attack an event such as concerts in the Vienna area. Photo credit: Heinz-Peter Bader
Last month, an attacker in England Three girls died and 10 were injured People were stabbed during a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga class. Swift said at the time that she was “completely shocked” by the attack.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer defended the organisers’ decision to cancel the concerts on Thursday, saying it was justified because the arrests of the suspects took place very close to the scheduled events on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
“I understand very well that people who wanted to experience the concert live are very sad,” Nehammer said at a news conference. “Parents are looking after their daughters and sons, who were full of excitement and anticipation for this concert. But it is also important that in critical moments like now, it is indispensable that safety comes first.”
Intense She is expected to perform five concerts at London’s Wembley Stadium between August 15 and 20 to conclude the European leg of her record-setting Eras Tour.
Fans of singer Taylor Swift gather at Happel Stadium after three of Taylor Swift’s concerts were cancelled after the government confirmed there was a planned attack at the venue, in Vienna, Austria. Photo credit: Elizabeth Mandel
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said that while he understood Vienna’s reasons for cancelling, “we will go ahead with it.” Khan said officials in the capital were prepared for the show to go on there after learning lessons from the 2017 attack. at Ariana Grande’s concert 22 people died in an explosion in Manchester, England.
was attacked by a suicide bomber one bag A bomb with explosives exploded at the Manchester Arena. The bomb exploded as thousands of young fans were leaving the arena at the end of Grande’s concert.
The superstar revealed that Swift’s biggest fear has always been that her concerts could lead to mass violence. ELLE Magazine The attack at Grande’s concert, as well as the 2017 mass shooting at an outdoor country music festival on the Las Vegas Strip that killed 58 people, were worrying Swift as she prepared to tour the globe.
“I was absolutely terrified going on[the Lover Tour]this time around, because I didn’t know how we were going to keep 3 million fans safe over seven months,” she told the magazine. “There was a tremendous amount of planning, expense and effort put into keeping my fans safe.”
an officer The investigation report will be presented in 2023 Britain’s domestic intelligence agency, MI5, did not act quickly enough on crucial information and missed a crucial opportunity to prevent the Manchester bombing, the deadliest extremist attack in the United Kingdom in recent years.
Magnus Ranstorp, a terrorism expert at the Swedish Defense University in Stockholm, told The Associated Press by phone that any mass public event now poses a potential threat.
“So it should not surprise us that these hugely popular iconic popstars, who attract massive audiences, would also attract terrorists who seek to create fear, destruction and mayhem,” he added.
