Prosecutors charge juvenile over Taylor Swift Vienna concert terror plot
German prosecutors have charged a Syrian juvenile in connection with a foiled terror plot targeting a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna last year.
Identified as Mohammad A, the suspect faces charges of supporting a foreign terrorist organisation. According to a statement from the prosecutor general on Friday, he allegedly assisted the would-be attacker by translating Arabic bomb-building instructions and facilitating online contact with a member of the Islamic State militia.
Police made multiple arrests over a suspected plot to attack a Taylor Swift concert in the Austrian capital's Ernst Happel Stadium, prompting the cancellation of all three of her shows there in August last year.
"Mohammad A has adhered to the ideology of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) since April 2024 at the latest," the statement said.
"Between mid-July and August 2024, he was in contact with a young Austrian who was planning a bomb attack on a concert by singer Taylor Swift in Vienna."
Austria's coalition government earlier this month agreed on a plan to enable police to monitor suspects' secure messaging in order to thwart militant attacks, ending what security officials have said is a rare and dangerous blind spot for a European Union country.
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New York Times
4 hours ago
- New York Times
Teenager Is Charged in 2024 Plot to Attack Taylor Swift Concert in Vienna
Prosecutors have charged a Syrian teenager living in Germany with helping to plot an attack on a Taylor Swift concert last summer, a threat that forced the music star to cancel three dates in Vienna that had been expected to draw some 150,000 fans. Investigators in Germany accused the teenager, whom they identified only as Mohammad A. in keeping with privacy rules, of helping to interpret Arabic bomb-building instructions and of translating an oath of allegiance to the Islamic State terrorist group for the main suspect in the plot. The charges against the Syrian teenager, which include supporting a foreign terrorism organization and helping to prepare 'a serious act of violence endangering the state,' were filed last week but publicized only on Friday. His exact age has not been released. The initial tip that there was a credible threat against Ms. Swift's concerts came from American intelligence, Austrian officials have said, and the authorities subsequently arrested a 19-year-old Austrian citizen with Macedonian roots as the main suspect. The police say that they found machetes, knives, and timers and chemicals to make explosives when they searched his parents' home in the town of Ternitz, about 40 miles south of Vienna. Officers also discovered counterfeit money and Islamic State propaganda in the house. The main suspect is being held in jail while the investigation continues, the Vienna prosecutor's office said on Friday. Another Austrian suspect, a 17-year-old whom the police arrested as a possible accomplice in August, has since been released without charge. The authorities said that the Syrian teenager arrested in Germany had become radicalized online and had connected the main suspect with an Islamic State contact over social media. Because he is a minor, the Syrian teenager has not been taken into custody. The cancellation of the concerts by Ms. Swift was a blow to the Austrian capital — her shows are often credited with providing multimillion-dollar boosts to the economies of host cities.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
Prosecutors charge juvenile over Taylor Swift Vienna concert terror plot
German prosecutors have charged a Syrian juvenile in connection with a foiled terror plot targeting a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna last year. Identified as Mohammad A, the suspect faces charges of supporting a foreign terrorist organisation. According to a statement from the prosecutor general on Friday, he allegedly assisted the would-be attacker by translating Arabic bomb-building instructions and facilitating online contact with a member of the Islamic State militia. Police made multiple arrests over a suspected plot to attack a Taylor Swift concert in the Austrian capital's Ernst Happel Stadium, prompting the cancellation of all three of her shows there in August last year. "Mohammad A has adhered to the ideology of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) since April 2024 at the latest," the statement said. "Between mid-July and August 2024, he was in contact with a young Austrian who was planning a bomb attack on a concert by singer Taylor Swift in Vienna." Austria's coalition government earlier this month agreed on a plan to enable police to monitor suspects' secure messaging in order to thwart militant attacks, ending what security officials have said is a rare and dangerous blind spot for a European Union country.
CNN
5 hours ago
- CNN
Germany arrests Syrian juvenile over foiled attack on Taylor Swift concert
Germany has charged a Syrian juvenile with supporting a foreign terrorist organization for helping to plan a foiled attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna last year, the prosecutor general said in a statement on Friday. Identified as Mohammad A, the suspect helped the would-be attacker by translating Arabic bomb-building instructions and putting him in contact with a member of the Islamic State militia online, according to the charges against him. Police made multiple arrests over a suspected plot to attack a Taylor Swift concert in the Austrian capital's Ernst Happel Stadium, prompting the cancellation of all three of her shows there in August last year. 'Mohammad A has adhered to the ideology of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS) since April 2024 at the latest,' the statement said. 'Between mid-July and August 2024, he was in contact with a young Austrian who was planning a bomb attack on a concert by singer Taylor Swift in Vienna.' Austria's coalition government earlier this month agreed on a plan to enable police to monitor suspects' secure messaging in order to thwart militant attacks, ending what security officials have said is a rare and dangerous blind spot for a European Union country.
