Austrian police arrested this Wednesday to two suspected terrorists who were planning to carry out an attack during the concerts Taylor Swift in Viennascheduled for August 8, 9 and 10, in addition to other events in the city, according to the Austrian Director General of Public Security, Franz Ruf.
Ruf reported at a press conference the arrest of A 19-year-old Austrian citizen in the town of Ternitzlocated about 65 kilometers southwest of Vienna, and a second person in the country’s capital.
The first of them had become radicalized through the Internet, where he provided a “pledge of allegiance to the Islamic State (IS)” in July. In addition, they found chemicals in his residence, which are being evaluated by the authorities.
These found objects would give the clue that The defendants had made specific preparations to carry out a terrorist attack.
“We have detected specific preparations for Taylor Swift’s concerts”said Ruf, who stressed: “Security measures have been strengthened for Taylor Swift’s concerts, with special emphasis on access controls and the inspection of people.”
To this end, special units will be made available, including, among other things, undercover personnel, canine units, and the intervention of the Cobra unit, the main tactical unit for anti-terrorist special operations in Austria.
Around 65,000 people are expected to gather each day, with an additional 15,000 to 20,000 people in the vicinity of the stadium. Ernst Happelthe director of the Vienna State Police said at the press conference, Gerhard Pürstl.
Likewise, the authorities explained that they will implement stricter controls at access pointswhich could lead to possible delays in the entry of attendees.
“The Vienna police will take all necessary measures to ensure the security of the event”Pürstl added, explaining that although the specific threat has been minimized, they remain on alert.
The anti-terrorist operation began on Wednesday morning and lasted for several hours, in which a nursing home was evacuated and other buildings, and roadblocks were set up, local news agency APA reported.
In November 2020, Vienna was the scene of a terrorist attack that left a balance of four deaths.
In December last year, the authorities Four suspects had been arrested for planning an attack in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in the city centre.
Source: Ambito
