Passenger stops axe attack on train heading from Hamburg to Vienna
In a horrific incident that occurred on Thursday afternoon, a man attacked passengers on a high-speed train (ICE 91) traveling from Hamburg to Vienna, using an axe. The incident resulted in four people being injured, three of them with moderate injuries and the fourth with minor injuries, according to the Bavarian Red Cross.
The attacker, believed to be a 20-year-old Syrian man, was bravely subdued by a passenger. This passenger disarmed the attacker – either an axe or a hammer – and attacked him with it, resulting in the attacker being injured as well. According to the newspaper "Bild", the assailant was airlifted to the hospital, while the police have not yet confirmed the identity of the attacker.
The incident occurred while around 500 passengers were on board the train. After some passengers activated the emergency brakes, the train stopped in an open area near Straßkirchen in Bavaria. Authorities responded with a large rescue operation that included medical and psychological units to support passengers who were not injured but experienced psychological trauma.
The company "Deutsche Bahn" issued a statement expressing its deep shock at the attack, affirming its solidarity with the injured and all those affected by the incident, and thanked the rescue teams for their swift intervention and the arrest of the suspect.
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