dpa
Solingen
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday visited the western city of Solingen, three days after a deadly stabbing attack which shocked the country and reignited debates on Germany’s migration policy and sharper knife laws.
Speaking after laying a white rose at the crime scene, Scholz said he was “furious,” calling for the suspected perpetrator - a 26-year-old Syrian man who has been remanded in custody - to be punished.
“We feel deeply what a terrible crime this is. It moves us all, and none of us will forget it,” Scholz said.
“This was terrorism. Terrorism against us all, threatening our lives, our sense of community, the way we live,” the chancellor added.
The attack on Friday evening came during a festival celebrating the city’s 650th anniversary. Two men, aged 67 and 56, and a 56-year-old woman were killed while eight others were wounded, four of them seriously, according to the local police chief. A judge issued an arrest warrant for the Syrian man on suspicion of murder and membership of the Islamic State terrorist group, among other charges, the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office said on Sunday.
The police found traces of the suspect’s DNA on the weapon used in the attack, sources close to the investigation told dpa. The 15-centimetre-long blade was discovered a few hundred metres from the scene of the crime.
Herbert Reul, the interior minister for the state of North Rhine Westphalia, told the Rheinische Post newspaper the knife’s sheath had been found at the refugee accommodation centre where the suspect had been residing.
The dead and injured were stabbed in the neck and areas of the upper body.
Scholz’s visit to Solingen included a memorial service for the victims at the site of the attack, as well as discussions with the city’s mayor, Tim Kurzbach. The chancellor was also accompanied by the state premier of North Rhine Westphalia, Hendrik Wüst.
Scholz said he wants to step up deportations “with legal regulations if necessary,” and called for “consistent, practical enforcement” of existing laws.
Scholz also promised to tighten laws on the carrying of deadly weapons. “This should and will happen very quickly,” Scholz said during his visit to Solingen. Scholz said he was sure that a draft bill would be quickly approved in the German parliament.
