A video circulating on “X” shows the brutal knife attack that took place on Friday afternoon at Mannheim’s market square. It shows a man stabbing bystanders without restraint.
Several people were injured in a knife attack in Mannheim, police reported. A man stabbed bystanders, including a police officer, at around half past eleven in the afternoon.
The situation was apparently so tense that “firearms were used against the attacker,” as the Mannheim police wrote in a press release. It goes on to say: “The attacker was also injured as a result.”
Much about the incident is still unclear. For example, how serious the injuries of the suspect and the victims were. Or whether the attacker was known to the police. However, videos showing the knife attack are circulating on “X” (formerly Twitter).
Because of the massive violence it contains, FOCUS online has decided not to publish the clip in its entirety. Instead, it will outline in writing what the video shows.
The videos are about 30 to 60 seconds long and begin with a view of a white van. The camera pans forward, where several people can be seen. There are posters on the ground, one of which has the word “Islamist” written on it.
A report by the “SWR” shows that the attack is said to have taken place around an information stand of “Pax Europa”. This is a right-wing association based in Krefeld that is considered critical of Islam.
In the next few seconds of the video, a scuffle can be seen and shouts can be heard. A man in a dark jacket and green shirt, surrounded by three other men in blue tops, is crouching on the ground and thrashing around. He obviously wants to get up.
At first you can’t see what he’s holding in his hand. Two of the men in the blue tops try to hold him. Suddenly he breaks free and storms towards the third. Now you can see that the man has a knife in his hand. He has a full beard and glasses.
The man holds the knife in the air and brings it down on his victim again and again. He is obviously aiming for the face. When the camera pans away, the bleeding leg wound of one person can be seen.
The event is accompanied by constant shouting. It is difficult to understand what exactly is being shouted. Only the sentence: “Put the knife away!” can be clearly heard again and again.
When the attacker is lying on the ground, two men pounce on him. It looks as if they want to disarm him. Then the situation becomes confusing, the image shakes. Other people seem to get involved, and mostly shoes are visible.
The knife attacker finally manages to pull himself together and runs towards a police officer who has just thrown himself at a man in a blue jacket, possibly assuming that the man might have something to do with the attack.
The knife attacker stabs the police officer in the neck. Both fall to the side. One officer can also be seen shooting the knife attacker.
Someone shouts: “Put the knife away! I want to see your hands!” The person in the blue jacket, who is now also lying on the ground, throws the knife to the side. Several police officers with service weapons in their hands can be seen. Then the recording ends.
Gundram Lottmann, chairman of the police union in Baden-Württemberg, reacted with horror after the attack in Mannheim. The police have repeatedly played out similar terror scenarios in recent years, especially against the backdrop of increasing attacks on politicians during their rallies. “But there are by no means enough staff to protect every event.”
Mannheim in particular is a hotspot due to its high migration density. The police have had to use firearms on several occasions. “But then certain left-wing groups keep coming forward and complaining about excessive police violence.” One colleague was recently acquitted by the regional court, and in the second case the public prosecutor’s office dropped the case. Nevertheless, the left-wing activists did not want to accept the decisions. “Fortunately, there is a video of today’s attack that clearly shows that the use of firearms was justified in stopping the knife attacker.”