Police emergency vehicles stand at a cordon in the city center of Solingen, Germany, in the early morning of Sunday, Aug. 25, 2024, following Friday’s deadly attack at the city’s 650th anniversary celebrations. Thomas Banneyer/AP/DPA
Thomas Banneyer/AP/DPA
SOLINGEN, Germany — A 26-year-old Syrian asylum-seeker turned himself into police, saying he was responsible for the Solingen knife attack that left three dead and eight wounded at a festival marking the city’s 650th anniversary, German authorities announced early Sunday.
Duesseldorf police said in a joint statement with the prosecutor’s office that the man “stated that he was responsible for the attack.”
“This person’s involvement in the crime is currently being intensively investigated,” the statement said.
The suspect is a Syrian citizen who had applied for asylum in Germany, police confirmed to The Associated Press.
On Saturday the Islamic State militant group claimed responsibility for the attack, without providing evidence. The extremist group said on its news site that the attacker targeted Christians and that he carried out the assaults Friday night “to avenge Muslims in Palestine and everywhere.” The claim couldn’t be independently