At the residence of one of the suspects, the authorities discovered chemical compounds and materials belonging to al-Qaida. According to the Austrian Ministry of the Interior, subsequent events will have a more stringent security protocol.
Following the announcement by Austrian law enforcement that three individuals had been arrested in connection with a possible conspiracy to assault the venue, Taylor Swift’s promoter decided to cancel her performances scheduled to take place in Vienna this week.
“With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety,” Barracuda Music said on Instagram late on Wednesday. They also added that all individuals who were planning to attend the concert would receive a refund for their tickets.
A suspect admits to perpetrating a violent scheme
A complete confession was given by one of the suspects, according to the police on Thursday.
“He stated that he intended to carry out an attack using explosives and knives,” said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, the chief of Austria’s internal intelligence service. “He used knives and explosives.”
“His aim was to kill himself and a large number of people during the concert, either today or tomorrow.”
Swift is now part of the “Eras Tour” and is performing a series of shows around Europe. She was just recently in Germany as part of this tour.
Karl Nehammer, the Chancellor of Austria, described the postponement of the performances as a “bitter disappointment” for Swift’s fans. He also said that “the situation surrounding the apparent planned terror attack in Vienna was very serious.”
In a post on X, he expressed his gratitude to the security services, stating that “the threat was identified early on, combated, and a tragedy was prevented.”
Bombs were studied online by the suspect
The primary suspect, a boy who was 19 years old, was taken into custody by Austrian officials on Wednesday in the city of Ternitz. Other individuals, ages 17 and 15, were also taken into custody.
The Interior Ministry said that the police had taken chemical compounds from the apartment of the primary suspect and had preemptively removed residences and a portion of a nursing home next to the apartment because they were concerned about the possibility of explosives being there.
Additionally, they discovered materials belonging to al-Qaida as well as the so-called “Islamic State” organization in the residence of the suspect.
It was reported by Haijawi-Pirchner on Thursday that the suspect had apparently conducted research on the internet on how to build explosives.
In a previous statement, Franz Ruf, the director general for public security at the Austrian Ministry of Interior, said that the suspects had been radicalized online and had taken tangible actions in preparation for attacks. “The young man had pledged allegiance to the self-styled “Islamic State” terror group,” he stated to the reporter.
“We have identified relevant preparatory actions and also that there was a focus from the 19-year-old on the Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna,” Ruf said in his statement.
There were plans to increase security for events in Vienna
There will be a heightened police presence and security regulations in place for forthcoming events in Vienna, including the three Taylor Swift performances that have been canceled. This was announced by the Ministry of the Interior.
In addition, it was said that the country’s level of terror alert remained high and that it was being continuously monitored.
Gerhard Purstl, the head of the state police force for Vienna, which is a city-state comparable to Berlin, the capital of Germany, provided an explanation of what kinds of things people who are going to be attending important events in Vienna in the coming days could anticipate.
“There will be relevant police officers on duty, both in plain clothes and in uniform, in particular special units like WEGA [a Vienna special emergency response unit] and police canine units, to meet the varied tasks facing police and to enable a disruption-free event,” Pürstl further said.
He said that we would be using both stationary and mobile video surveillance, and that we would also be monitoring the skies above Austria.
Those who attended were cautioned to be prepared for possibly exhaustive search procedures upon admission to events of this kind and not to be surprised by them. According to him, the Vienna police and the attendees of the event were in close communication with one another.
Purstl cautioned that those who are going by automobile should also be prepared for interruptions, as limits are likely to be implemented in an effort to guarantee that only approved cars will be able to access the Ernst Happel Stadium.
In conclusion, he pleaded with individuals to take all of this into consideration and to make allowances for additional time in order to get to the location and obtain access to the event. Barracuda Music made a statement a few hours later, which left this entirely without significance.
