Image: EVA MANHART (APA)
Three young men are said to have planned an attack on the 27th Rainbow Parade for LGBTIQ rights, which took place in Vienna on Saturday. This was announced by the police in Vienna in the morning in a hastily called press conference.
The suspects, aged 14, 17 and 20, were arrested before the start of the event, which was attended by around 300,000 people, said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, director of the State Security and Intelligence Service (DSN).
IS sympathizers
Haijawi-Pirchner emphasized that “at no time was there any specific danger” for the participants in the parade. The DSN had previously learned about the alleged plans of the suspects who had been radicalized online and who are sympathetic to the Islamic State (IS), kept them “under constant surveillance” and after house searches on Saturday, which unearthed various pieces of evidence, including weapons, were ordered by the authorities St. Pölten public prosecutor arrested.
The three young men, Austrian citizens of Bosnian or Chechen origin, had planned to carry out an attack “with a knife or a car,” it said. One of the suspects was already known to the police in connection with acts of terrorism.
“Closely Monitored”
As Haijawi-Pirchner explained, there was never a “dedicated danger”. The alleged perpetrators were “closely” monitored. They radicalized themselves online and shared IS content. There were also indications of weapon purchases abroad. The trio was arrested by Cobra forces before the parade began.
Now the extensive evidence, including mobile phones, weapons, throwing stars, gas pressure guns and a saber and the secured data carriers, must be evaluated. The house searches took place in Vienna and St. Pölten. The public prosecutor in St. Pölten ordered the arrest of the three, and they were taken to the prison there.
One of the suspects also had a vehicle. However, further investigations are necessary to determine whether he also wanted to use this. It must also first be examined whether the gas pressure guns may have been modified or adapted.
Organizer only informed today
The organizer of the rainbow parade was only informed about the events today, Sunday. They didn’t want to create panic reactions among the participants, especially since the police had already accessed the site. According to Haijawi-Pirchner, the three are said to have already carried out the appropriate preparatory actions: “There was a corresponding moment of danger in advance, but it was completely intercepted.”
The corresponding security and protection concepts were implemented yesterday for the politicians taking part in the rainbow parade. The DSN manager did not want to reveal exactly what these looked like, so as not to endanger them in the future.
The Vienna police have taken “all conceivable measures and precautions” to secure the event, emphasized State Police President Gerhard Pürstl. A total of 700 officers were deployed, including special forces because of the warning from state security. According to Pürstl, the greatest threat comes from radicalized individual perpetrators who act of their own accord or on behalf of or in consultation with terrorist organizations: “We always have to focus on individual attacks.” The LGBTIQ community in particular represents an “intense enemy” for many.
Katharina Kacerovsky-Strobl, organizer of the Vienna Pride event series with the rainbow parade on the Vienna Ring as the highlight, said in a first statement when asked by APA what the threat to the implementation of the major event could mean: “We hope for the future together with the City of Vienna, to be able to prepare even better for such dangers.”
Source: Nachrichten
