Knife attack in Villach: Grief and political outrage take Austria!

Knife attack in Villach: Grief and political outrage take Austria!

A tragic incident shakes the city of Villach and all of Austria: a 14-year-old student was brutally killed in a fatal knife attack on Saturday, five other people were seriously injured. The alleged perpetrator, a 23-year-old Syrian refugee, had radicalized within a short time, according to

political reactions to this bloody act followed promptly. Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen expressed his deep sympathy with the victims and their families, while other politicians such as SPÖ boss Andreas Babler and FPÖ boss Herbert Kickl also expressed sharp criticism of the current measures and asylum policy. BABLER demanded the "full hardness of the rule of law", while Kickl described the events as an expression of a "system failure of the first quality" and demanded that the safety of the population had to come first. The governor of Carinthia, Peter Kaiser, spoke of a necessity to rethink the living, but pointed out that nobody should be condemned in a general way based on an individual case, as reported.

The knife attack in Villach caused shock and dismay not only with the authorities, but also in the population. Many questions are unanswered and the political initiatives after the incident could have far -reaching consequences for asylum policy in Austria. Karner emphasized that there must now be "necessary determination" to ensure security and prevent similar incidents in the future. The incident presents the government with great challenges, while the city of Villach has proclaimed a mourning week and the company wrestles for answers and solutions.