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2023 Brokstedt stabbing

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Brokstedt stabbing
LocationBrokstedt, Steinburg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Date25 January 2023
3 p.m. (CET, UTC+01:00)
Attack type
Mass stabbing
WeaponsBladed weapon
Deaths2
Injured8 (including the suspect)
MotiveAnger and frustration at his personal situation
ConvictedLife
VerdictGuilty
ChargesTwo counts of murder, four counts of attempted murder
JudgeJohann Lohmann

On 25 January 2023 a mass stabbing occurred on a train in Brokstedt, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. A 33-year-old stateless man from the Palestinian territories stabbed nine people on a moving passenger train, killing two. He came to Germany in 2014 and was granted subsidiary protection in 2016, even though he was known to police for sexual and violent offenses with 24 preliminary and criminal proceedings. He had been in police custody until one week before the attack. The public prosecutor saw the motive for the crime as anger and frustration at his personal situation. In February 2023, "considerable shortcomings in the communication and administration of the authorities involved in immigration" were found.

Attack

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At about 3 p.m. on 25 January 2023, a 33-year-old man of Palestinian origin stabbed nine people on a moving passenger train in Brokstedt, Steinburg, Schleswig-Holstein, in Northern Germany.[1] The train was travelling from Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein to Hamburg and was carrying about 70 people.[1] Two of the victims were killed and seven others injured, three of them severely.[1] The deceased victims were identified as a 17-year-old girl and her boyfriend, who was 19.[2][3] The attack allegedly ended when passengers restrained the attacker until the police arrived and arrested him at the train station in Brokstedt. The station was shut down to facilitate the ongoing emergency response efforts.[4][5] The suspect, a man, identified as Ibrahim A., who was also injured, was arrested and taken to hospital.[1]

Suspect

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Sabine Sütterlin-Waack, the interior minister of Schleswig-Holstein, announced the suspect in custody was 33-year-old stateless Ibrahim A. from the Palestinian territories. He was not known to be on any extremist watch lists, but the attack was under investigation.[4][6] The suspect reportedly came to Germany in December 2014, lived first in North Rhine-Westphalia and then in Schleswig-Holstein. He was granted subsidiary protection in 2016 even though he was known to police for sexual and violent offenses and was in police custody for one year until a week before the attack.[7]

Ibrahim A. was registered in the district of Euskirchen and fell under the jurisdiction of the Euskirchen Foreigners Authority (Auslaenderamt).[8] In his asylum application of 22 January 2015, he stated that he was from the Gaza Strip, stateless and persecuted by Hamas. The application was rejected on 12 July 2016; however, A. was granted subsidiary protection. At that time, he had already been sentenced twice to fines for theft (2015) and proceedings were ongoing against him for assault. On 26 July 2016, Ibrahim A. was given a suspended sentence of one year for dangerous bodily harm.

From September 2015 to January 2021, there had been 24 preliminary and criminal proceedings against Ibrahim A., most of which were discontinued. The only four final convictions were one suspended sentence for dangerous bodily harm, two fines for theft and one drug offence (2018). The offences or offence charges listed are: Theft, fraud, dangerous bodily harm, drugs, sexual harassment, damage to property, child abuse, rape of persons unfit to resist, driving without a license and trespassing.[9] From 21 January 2022 until 19 January 2023 A. was in Billwerder prison. On 18 August 2022, the St. Georg Local Court of Hamburg sentenced Ibrahim A. to one year and one week imprisonment for dangerous bodily harm and theft. A. appealed against the sentence. On 19 January 2023, he had to be released, because a one-year sentence had been served and a decision on appeal was not expected in the foreseeable future. Six days later, the knife attack happened in Brokstedt.

While in custody, Ibrahim A. behaved conspicuously. He insulted inmates and court staff and physical altercations took place. A prison officer noticed on 6 August 2022 that Ibrahim A. was "stammering to himself": "Big car, Berlin, that's the truth." To another staff member, he twice expressed whether the latter also wanted to "get under the tyres". In a so-called perception sheet in the prisoner's personnel file, it was recorded in August 2022 that he also compared himself to the attacker at 2016 Berlin truck attack on Breitscheidplatz, Anis Amri. "There is not only one Anis Amri, there are several, I am also one."[10]

Ibrahim A. was charged with two counts of murder and four counts of attempted murder.[11][12] He was sentenced to life in prison by judge Johann Lohmann[13] from the Itzehoe district court on 15 April 2024.[14]

Motivation

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The prosecutor's office did not assume a terrorist background, although Ibrahim A. was said to have compared himself with Anis Amri. Rather, they saw the motive for the crime as anger and frustration at his personal situation.[11]

Reactions

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On 22 February 2023, the Schleswig-Holsteinischer Landtag deliberated a proposal Lessons from the Brockstedt case: Improving communication with the authorities and establishing consistent deportation. Considerable shortcomings in the communication and administration of the authorities involved in immigration were found.[15]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Two dead and seven injured after man stabs passengers on German train". ITV News. 25 January 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  2. ^ "Pärchen (17 und 19) getötet – sie waren erst seit einer Woche zusammen". 20Minuten. 28 January 2023.
  3. ^ „Es ist kein Einzelfall“ – Vater der erstochenen Ann-Marie über den Messer-Mord von Brokstedt on YouTube, Achtung, Reichelt!, March 1, 2023 (German)
  4. ^ a b "Germany: 2 killed, several injured in train knife attack – DW – 01/25/2023". dw.com. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  5. ^ Schuetze, Christopher F. (25 January 2023). "Suspect Arrested in Deadly Stabbing of 2 on Train in Germany". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  6. ^ "Two people killed after man stabs passengers on train in Germany". Sky News.
  7. ^ "Zugverkehr läuft in Brokstedt wieder an". DIE WELT (in German). Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  8. ^ Friederike Schneider (15 February 2023). "Der Weg nach Brokstedt: Chronik der Ereignisse vor der Tat". NDR Nachrichten. Norddeutscher Rundfunk. Retrieved 2 April 2023.>
  9. ^ "24 Verfahren und nur eine Verurteilung Attentat von Brokstedt: NRW prüft Wiederaufnahme von vier Verfahren gegen Ibrahim A." RTL News. RTL News GmbH. 9 February 2023. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  10. ^ "Messerattacke in Brokstedt : Verdächtiger verglich sich mit Anis Amri". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (Der mutmaßliche Messer-Angreifer soll sich mit dem Breitscheidplatz-Attentäter Amri verglichen haben. Eine entsprechende Äußerung steht einem Bericht zufolge in seiner Akte). Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung GmbH 2001 - 2023. 5 February 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  11. ^ a b tagesschau.de (27 April 2023). "Staatsanwaltschaft erhebt Anklage nach tödlicher Messerattacke in Zug" (in German). Retrieved 23 May 2023.
  12. ^ robertsemonsen (29 April 2023). "Germany: Ibrahim A. Charged With Murder Following Brokstedt's Knife Rampage". europeanconservative.com. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
  13. ^ "Messerattacke in Brokstedt: Lebenslange Haft für Ibrahim A." ZDFheute (in German). 15 May 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
  14. ^ "German court convicts a man of murder over a fatal stabbing on a train last year". AP News. 15 May 2024. Retrieved 4 June 2024.
  15. ^ "Plenarprotokoll 19. Sitzung Mittwoch, 22. Februar 2023" (PDF). Schleswig-Holsteinischer Landtag Plenarprotokoll 20/19 20. Wahlperiode. 22 February 2023. pp. 1336–1357.
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