Austria thwarts ‘possible Islamist attack’ on Pride march
Austrian police have arrested three suspects in connection with a planned attack on the Pride Parade in the capital Vienna, the country’s security services announced on Sunday.
The parade took place in the city on Saturday with some 300,000 people in attendance.
The suspects are aged between 14 and 20 years old, all of them Austrian citizens. While they have not been officially named, it was revealed the trio had Bosnian and Chechen family origins.
The planned attack was apparently motivated by Islamist sentiments, early investigation results indicate. Austria’s domestic intelligence chief, Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, revealed the three suspects were sympathizers of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) terrorist group.
“Through the successful and also timely intervention, we managed to defuse the moment of danger for Vienna Pride and to ensure the safety of all participants,” he said.
The spy boss did not reveal the exact nature of the would-be attack that was foiled, stating only that the suspects were found in possession of items banned under Austria’s weapons laws.
The security services were praised by Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, who expressed his gratitude for the timely intervention and prevention of a “possible Islamist attack in Vienna.” The foiled attempt by the suspected terrorists has shown that “we must never give in in the fight against radicals and extremists,” the Chancellor wrote on Twitter.
