Latest news with #IssaAlHasan
Telegraph
4 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
I deserve a life sentence: Syrian admits triple murder at German festival
A Syrian man has said he 'deserves and expects a life sentence' after pleading guilty to killing three people at a German festival last year. Issa al-Hasan, 27, a suspected member of the Islamic State group, made the confession at the start of his trial, held under tight security in Duesseldorf. The attack at the mid-summer street festival in Solingen in August 2024, which also injured 10 people, was one in a series of attacks attributed to asylum seekers and migrants that pushed immigration to the top of the political agenda in Germany. Hasan was an asylum seeker from Syria who had been slated for deportation, but authorities had failed to remove him from the country. He is charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and membership of a foreign terrorist organisation. Sitting behind a protective glass screen, he admitted in a statement read by his lawyer that he had ' committed a grave crime '. 'Three people died at my hands. I seriously injured others,' Hasan said. 'Some of them survived only by luck. They could have died, too. 'I deserve and expect a life sentence.' Prosecutors say he set out to harm 'non-believers' at the 'festival for diversity'. He allegedly saw his targets 'as representatives of Western society' and sought 'to take revenge against them for the military actions of Western states'. IS later posted on messaging app Telegram that a 'soldier' had carried out the attack in 'revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere'. Video footage allegedly showed Hasan pledging allegiance to IS. Prosecutors said he forwarded the tapes on to his IS contact just before he committed the attack. Hasan did not specifically address his alleged motivations for carrying out the attack or his supposed IS membership. A psychiatric expert told the court that the accused had denied being a radical Islamist. Two months before the attack in May 2024, a man with a knife attacked people at an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, fatally wounding a police officer who intervened. The Afghan suspect went on trial in February and is also alleged to be sympathetic to the IS group. In December the same year, a Saudi man was arrested after a car ploughed through a Christmas market crowd in the eastern city of Magdeburg, killing six people and wounding hundreds. In January, a man with a kitchen knife attacked a group of children in Aschaffenburg, killing a two-year-old boy and a man who tried to protect the toddlers. A 28-year-old Afghan man was arrested at the scene of the attack, which came during campaigning for Feb 23 elections. Just 10 days before the vote, another Afghan man was arrested on suspicion of driving a car through a street rally in Munich, killing a two-year-old girl and her mother and injuring dozens. The centre-right CDU/CSU, which demanded tough curbs on immigration in the wake of the attacks, came first in the election with 28.5 per cent of the vote. But the biggest gains were made by the far-Right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which saw its share of the vote more than double to over 20 per cent.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Syrian asylum seeker who killed three people and wounded ten others in knife rampage at 'festival of diversity' after he was slated for deportation pleads guilty at German court
A Syrian asylum seeker suspected of belonging to the Islamic State group has pleaded guilty to killing three people and wounding 10 more in a stabbing spree at a German summer festival last year. Issa Al Hasan, 27, made the confession at the start of his trial, held under tight security at the higher regional court in Duesseldorf on Tuesday. In a statement read out by his lawyer, Hasan, sitting under police guard behind a protective glass screen, admitted having 'committed a grave crime '. 'Three people died at my hands. I seriously injured others,' Hasan said of the attack in August in the western city of Solingen. 'Some of them survived only by luck. They could have died, too,' he said in the statement. 'I deserve and expect a life sentence.' The stabbing spree at the mid-summer street festival was one of a string of attacks that shocked Germany and stoked security fears. Hasan was an asylum seeker from Syria who had been slated for deportation. German authorities' failure to remove him from the country fired a bitter debate over immigration that heated up in the run-up to national elections in February this year. Hasan faces charges including three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and membership of a foreign terrorist organisation. Prosecutors say he set out to harm 'nonbelievers' at the 'festival for diversity' in the centre of the western city of Solingen. Hasan allegedly saw his targets 'as representatives of Western society' and sought 'to take revenge against them for the military actions of Western states'. An IS member whom Hasan had contacted that month allegedly encouraged him to go ahead with the plan and promised him that the group would claim it and use it for propaganda purposes. The group later said via its Amaq outlet on the messaging app Telegram that an IS 'soldier' had carried out the attack in 'revenge' for Muslims 'in Palestine and everywhere'. Prosecutors say Hasan had filmed videos in which he pledged allegiance to IS and forwarded them on to his IS contact just before he committed the attack. Hasan did not specifically address his alleged motivations for carrying out the attack or his supposed IS membership. A psychiatric expert told the court that the accused had denied being a radical Islamist. Forensic police inspect on early August 24, 2024 the area where at three people were killed and 10 injured when Hasan attacked them with a knife on late August 23, 2024 in Solingen In the statement read out by his lawyer, Hasan said he had 'killed and injured innocent people, not unbelievers'. 'Christians, Jews and Muslims, we all are cousins, not enemies.' The stabbing spree was one in a series of attacks attributed to asylum seekers and migrants that pushed immigration to the top of the political agenda in Germany. In May 2024, a man with a knife attacked people at an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, fatally wounding a police officer who intervened. The Afghan suspect went on trial in February and is also alleged to be sympathetic to the IS group. In December, a Saudi man was arrested after a car ploughed through a Christmas market crowd in the eastern city of Magdeburg, killing six people and wounding hundreds. And in January, a man with a kitchen knife attacked a group of kindergarten children in Aschaffenburg, killing a two-year-old boy and a man who tried to protect the toddlers. A 28-year-old Afghan man was arrested at the scene of the attack, which came during campaigning for February 23 elections. Just 10 days before the vote, an Afghan man was arrested on suspicion of driving a car through a street rally in Munich, killing a two-year-old girl and her mother and injuring dozens. The centre-right CDU/CSU, which demanded tough curbs on immigration in the wake of the attacks, came first in the election with 28.5 per cent of the vote. The biggest gains however were made by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which saw its share of the vote more than double to over 20 per cent.
LBCI
4 days ago
- General
- LBCI
Syrian man pleads guilty over knife attack at German festival
A Syrian man suspected of belonging to the Islamic State group pleaded guilty to the murder of three people at a German festival as his trial opened on Tuesday. In a statement read out by his lawyer, Issa Al Hasan admitted that he had "committed a grave crime" and that "three people died at my hands." AFP
Local Germany
4 days ago
- Politics
- Local Germany
Suspect pleads guilty to deadly knife rampage at German festival in Solingen
Issa Al Hasan, 27, made the confession at the start of his trial, which was held under tight security at the higher regional court in Düsseldorf. In a statement read out by his lawyer, Hasan, sitting under police guard behind a protective glass screen, admitted having "committed a grave crime". "Three people died at my hands. I seriously injured others," Hasan said of the attack in August in the western city of Solingen. "Some of them survived only by luck. They could have died, too," he said in the statement. "I deserve and expect a life sentence." The stabbing spree at the mid-summer street festival was one of a string of attacks that shocked Germany and stoked security fears. Hasan was an asylum seeker from Syria who had been slated for deportation. German authorities' failure to remove him from the country fired a bitter debate over immigration in the run-up to national elections in February this year. Hasan faces charges including three counts of murder, ten counts of attempted murder and membership of a foreign terror organisation. 'Revenge' Prosecutors say he set out to harm "nonbelievers" at the "festival for diversity" in the centre of the western city of Solingen. Hasan allegedly saw his targets "as representatives of Western society" and sought "to take revenge against them for the military actions of Western states". Advertisement A member of IS whom Hasan had contacted that month allegedly encouraged him to go ahead with the plan and promised him that the group would claim it and use it for propaganda purposes. The group later said via its Amaq outlet on the Telegram messaging app that an IS "soldier" had carried out the attack in "revenge" for Muslims. Prosecutors say Hasan had filmed videos in which he pledged allegiance to IS and forwarded them on to his IS contact just before he committed the attack. German federal and state leaders stand at a memorial for the victims of the knife attack in Solingen. Photo by INA FASSBENDER / AFP In the statement read out by his lawyer, Hasan recanted his alleged motivation for carrying out the attack. "I killed and injured innocent people, not unbelievers," he said. "Christians, Jews and Muslims, we all are cousins, not enemies." Immigration debate The Solingen stabbing spree was one in a series of attacks attributed to asylum seekers and migrants that pushed immigration to the top of the political agenda in Germany. In May 2024, a man with a knife attacked people at an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, mortally wounding a police officer who intervened. The Afghan suspect in the stabbing went on trial in February and is also alleged to be sympathetic to the IS group. In December, a Saudi man was arrested after a car rammed into a Christmas market in the eastern city of Magdeburg, killing six people and wounding hundreds. And in January, a man with a kitchen knife attacked a group of kindergarten children in Aschaffenburg, killing a two-year-old boy and a man who tried to intervene. A 28-year-old Afghan man was arrested at the scene of the attack, which came during campaigning for elections on February 23rd. Advertisement Just ten days before the vote, an Afghan man was arrested on suspicion of ploughing a car through a street rally in Munich, killing a two-year-old girl and her mother and injuring dozens. READ ALSO: How German media reveals its bias when foreigners commit crimes The centre-right CDU/CSU, which demanded tough curbs on immigration in the wake of the attacks, came first in the election with 28.5 percent of the vote. The biggest gains however were made by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which saw its share of the vote more than double to over 20 percent.
The Citizen
4 days ago
- The Citizen
Syrian man pleads guilty to deadly knife rampage at German festival
Issa Al Hasan pleaded guilty to killing three people and injuring 10 during a stabbing spree at a German festival, admitting his crime and calling for a life sentence. Syrian defendant Issa Al H. bends over as he sits at his place in the courtroom at court building in Duesseldorf, western Germany, on May 27, 2025, at the start of his trial over a deadly knife attack that killed three people in August 2024 in Solingen, western Germany, during a summer city festival. Defendant Issa Al H. is on trial for three counts of murder, ten counts of attempted murder and membership of the jihadist militia Islamic State (IS). (Photo by INA FASSBENDER / AFP) A Syrian man suspected of belonging to the Islamic State group pleaded guilty Tuesday to killing three people and wounding 10 more in a stabbing spree at a German summer festival last year. Issa Al Hasan, 27, made the confession at the start of his trial, which was held under tight security at the higher regional court in Duesseldorf. In a statement read out by his lawyer, Hasan, sitting under police guard behind a protective glass screen, admitted having 'committed a grave crime'. 'Three people died at my hands. I seriously injured others,' Hasan said of the attack in August in the western city of Solingen. 'Some of them survived only by luck. They could have died, too,' he said in the statement. 'I deserve and expect a life sentence.' ALSO READ: Merz wins narrow chancellorship in Germany's dramatic vote The stabbing spree at the mid-summer street festival was one of a string of attacks that shocked Germany and stoked security fears. Hasan was an asylum seeker from Syria who had been slated for deportation. German authorities' failure to remove him from the country fired a bitter debate over immigration in the run-up to national elections in February this year. Hasan faces charges including three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and membership of a foreign terror organisation. 'Revenge' for Muslims Prosecutors say he set out to harm 'nonbelievers' at the 'festival for diversity' in the centre of the western city of Solingen. Hasan allegedly saw his targets 'as representatives of Western society' and sought 'to take revenge against them for the military actions of Western states'. ALSO READ: Tesla sales fall again in Germany as drivers steer clear of Musk A member of IS whom Hasan had contacted that month allegedly encouraged him to go ahead with the plan and promised him that the group would claim it and use it for propaganda purposes. The group later said via its Amaq outlet on the Telegram messaging app that an IS 'soldier' had carried out the attack in 'revenge' for Muslims 'in Palestine and everywhere'. Prosecutors say Hasan had filmed videos in which he pledged allegiance to IS and forwarded them on to his IS contact just before he committed the attack. In the statement read out by his lawyer, Hasan recanted his alleged motivation for carrying out the attack. 'I killed and injured innocent people, not unbelievers,' he said. 'Christians, Jews and Muslims, we all are cousins, not enemies.' ALSO READ: Smartwatch market expands as Huawei sets date for Berlin launch [VIDEO] Immigration debate The Solingen stabbing spree was one in a series of attacks attributed to asylum seekers and migrants that pushed immigration to the top of the political agenda in Germany. In May 2024, a man with a knife attacked people at an anti-Islam rally in Mannheim, mortally wounding a police officer who intervened. The Afghan suspect in the stabbing went on trial in February and is also alleged to be sympathetic to the IS group. In December, a Saudi man was arrested after a car rammed into a Christmas market in the eastern city of Magdeburg, killing six people and wounding hundreds. And in January, a man with a kitchen knife attacked a group of kindergarten children in Aschaffenburg, killing a two-year-old boy and a man who tried to intervene. A 28-year-old Afghan man was arrested at the scene of the attack, which came during campaigning for elections on February 23. ALSO READ: Holocaust survivor recalls how an 'angel' saved his family from execution in Romania Just 10 days before the vote, an Afghan man was arrested on suspicion of ploughing a car through a street rally in Munich, killing a two-year-old girl and her mother and injuring dozens. The centre-right CDU/CSU, which demanded tough curbs on immigration in the wake of the attacks, came first in the election with 28.5 percent of the vote. The biggest gains however were made by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which saw its share of the vote more than double to over 20 percent. – By: © Agence France-Presse
