German officials have blamed a mass stabbing attack at the central railway station in Hamburg on mental illness, after a bloody assault on Friday night injured 18 individuals.
The suspect, a 39-year-old German female, was arrested at the scene following her reported attack on passengers on the platform of a station shortly after 6:00 pm amid heavy rush hour. Police reported that the woman showed “very clear indications of a psychological illness,” with no further information on her state being made public. Police also discounted the possibility of drug or alcohol use and political motivation for the attack.
Officialdom thinks the woman operated alone. She was taken down by officers and passersby without a struggle and was due to appear in front of a judge on Saturday.
Among them were four who were injured—one man of 24 years and three women of 24, 52, and 85 years—whose injuries were critical. Emergency workers at first worried that their wounds might be fatal, but police later said they are no longer in danger. The victims’ ages varied from 19 to 85 years old.
German media indicated that certain victims were treated medicinally on board parked trains. Photographs at the scene depicted ambulances and forensic officers cordoning off the area.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz voiced his concern during a telephone call with Hamburg’s mayor, saying, “My thoughts are with the victims and their families.”
The attack comes in the wake of a series of recent violent attacks in Germany, with a stabbing in Bielefeld last week involving a suspect who made jihadist claims. Those incidents have rekindled debates over national security and public safety, particularly in busy areas such as train stations.
Even with tougher knife laws brought in last year, such as on public gatherings and inter-city trains, experts and police unions remain to wonder if they will be effective, especially in high-density urban areas like Hamburg.
