Assailant stabs well-known Islam critic in the face in ‘terror’ incident at anti-political Islam rally

From the German edition of The Local and the Daily Mail

A man wielding a knife attacked an anti-Islam campaigner and two other people in the southwestern German city of Mannheim on Friday before being shot by police, according to reports

The shocking spree unfolded in Mannheim city centre where anti-Islam campaigner Michael Stuerzenberger was speaking at an event of the Citizens’ Movement Pax Europa (BPE) – a group that advocates against the ‘Islamisation’ of Europe.

Chaos broke out at the event when a man dressed in a dark hooded jacket, green shirt and tracksuit bottoms tackled Stuerzenberger to the ground and violently swung a large blade at him, prompting terrified screams from onlookers.

Other BPE members sprinted over and tried to drag the knifeman away, but the would-be killer wriggled free and dove on top of the bloodied victim to plunge the weapon in for a second time.

Police descended on the scene almost immediately – but not before the attacker had left two people lying on the floor, blood pooling on the cobblestones.

One officer then made a potentially fatal mistake.  Amid the confusion, he waded in and jumped on one of the victims, seemingly having mistaken him for the aggressor. This misread of the situation gave the bloodthirsty attacker a chance to circle behind and ram his blade into the policeman’s neck.

His colleagues were heard screaming ‘throw the knife away!’ – but with the knifeman not responding to any orders the officers opened fire from near point blank range and sent him crashing to the ground.

German media reported the knifeman died from his gunshot wounds, while his victims were rushed to hospital.

The police were initially unable to say how many people were hurt in the attack and how serious the injuries were, but later reports revealed that at least three people had suffered injuries.

The motive for the attack is still unclear, but police say they are investigating whether the attack was politically motivated.

Stefanie Kizina, treasurer of the BPE, told BILD: ‘This was not an attack, but an act of terror. The attack happened before the event even started, it must have been planned well in advance.  Criticism of religion must be allowed, it is a core element of the European Enlightenment!’

The horrific attack was captured in its entirety by a cameraman who was livestreaming the event on the BPE’s YouTube page. The stream was quickly taken down but it concluded with paramedics arriving on scene to administer vital first aid to at least three victims who had collapsed to the floor.