14 arrested in connection with Vienna terrorist attack as police carry out 18 raids

Austria’s interior minister says police carried out 18 raids and made 14 arrests after searching the home of the deceased assailant of Monday’s terrorist attack in Vienna, although footage suggests that he acted alone.

Following a raid on the terrorist’s apartment, Austrian police carried out a series of further raids on the homes of known associates, Interior Minister Karl Nehammer told reporters on Tuesday.

The 14 people arrested remain in detention for questioning. 

The minister also said that video footage provided by members of the public suggests that the gunman, who killed four and injured 22 before being shot dead by police, acted alone. However, the authorities are still working to rule out the possibility there was a second attacker.

The gunman at the center of Monday evening’s attack was quickly identified as Kujtim Fejzulai, a 20-year-old Austrian-North Macedonian with dual citizenship. He was known to the security services and had a previous terrorist conviction for attempting to join Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) in Syria.

Fejzulai was sentenced to 22 months in prison in April 2019 after he attempted to travel to Syria and join Islamic State. He was granted early release in December 2019. 

Earlier on Tuesday, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said “yesterday’s attack was clearly an Islamist terror attack,” adding: “it was an attack out of hatred – hatred for our fundamental values, hatred for our way of life, hatred for our democracy in which all people have equal rights and dignity.”

Leaders from around the world have condemned Monday’s events, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel saying “Islamist terrorism is our common enemy.”

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