Following a brutal attack at a festival in Solingen, west Germany on Friday night, in which three people were stabbed to death and eight others injured, German police have arrested a 26-year-old Syrian man who reportedly handed himself in and admitted to carrying out the mass killing.

The young man attacked festival-goers attending the event, a celebration of the 650th anniversary of the founding of the city, located about 25 kilometres east of Dusseldorf, before fleeing. The victims have been identified as two men, aged 67 and 56, and a 56-year-old woman. Of the eight people injured, four are reportedly in a serious condition.

According to the German Bild newspaper, following a major manhunt, the young man approached the police at around 23:00 on Saturday night, telling them: "I’m the one you’re looking for."

German federal prosecutors have now taken over the investigation, with Dusseldorf police releasing a joint statement with the prosecutor’s office, saying, “This person’s involvement in the crime is currently being intensively investigated.”
The man is said to be affiliated with a home for refugees in Solingen, which was raided on Saturday.

The terror group ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack, reportedly stating that it was carried out “in revenge for Muslims in Palestine and everywhere.” Since ISIS has claimed responsibility both correctly and falsely for previous attacks, though it’s not yet clear from investigations whether there’s any link between the attacker and the so-called Islamic State.

Questions have been raised about the timing of the attack, which was carried out a few days before crucial regional state elections in east Germany in which the far-right anti-refugee, anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) party has been tipped to win in a number of seats.
The party, which has close ties with the Kremlin and with Assad’s regime, is expected to leverage the attack in the historically liberal city of Solingen to increase its support base there and elsewhere in Germany.

Some have suggested that Assad’s and Putin’s history of sponsoring and benefiting from terror, along with their creation and use of waves of refugees to boost far-right allies, means that investigators should be looking into their involvement.

“If I’m unsure about who might be behind anything, I first ask, ‘Who benefits?’” said one terror expert, consulted by RFS on condition of anonymity. “So in this case, I ask who are Daesh’s [ISIS] main beneficiaries? It’s never been ordinary Muslims, who’ve been both ISIS’ primary victims globally and the ones targeted in revenge for their terrorism. It’s never been the Iraqi or Syrian people who rose up for freedom from tyranny, not to be tyrannised again by new theocratic tyrants! All ISIS and Al Qaeda have ever done is to slander and abuse Islam, twisting and defaming faith to justify subjugating, terrorising and murdering innocents, and serving as monsters used to justify greater dehumanisation, slaughter and repression of the ordinary Muslims who are also their primary victims - what sort of ‘benefit’ is that?!

“But others have benefited massively – firstly, Assad and Khamenei, two globally infamous terror sponsors who have expertly instrumentalised the War on Terror as a tool of survival and empowerment. Who could have imagined the genocidal Assad surviving in power after gassing, bombing, torturing and starving millions of his own people? But ISIS achieved that for him – suddenly the rabid wolf was the ‘protector’ of the flock, at least according to his propaganda and his allies. Iran’s regime was a pariah for decades – suddenly with Al Qaeda, then ISIS, it was embraced by the international community, partnering in the War on Terror – America helped Iran get rid of Saddam who had been such a nuisance in thwarting its regional expansion, Khamenei’s militias worked with US forces in Iraq, for Iran, as for Assad, it’s been one immense benefit after another; Assad‘s and the Iranians’ work with Al Qaeda is well documented, and Assad’s own former officials have explained how they’ve shaped and directed Daesh – but such is the power of the monster myth and perhaps the usefulness of authoritarian rule for world powers that they’ve gotten away with it.

“Obviously Assad and Khamenei aren’t alone in being arsonist-firemen of terror. And other authoritarians have certainly learnt from their examples or had similar ideas in utilising the War on Terror – Putin is another natural partner and of course Netanyahu, Xi, Modi, all the world’s authoritarians, autocrats and oppressive regimes have also been beneficiaries, and all have used this self-aggrandising narrative of heroic opposition to terror to dehumanise Muslims, justify carnage and empower fascist allies – including the AfD.

“So, do we know that Assad’s regime or any of his allies were behind the Solingen attack? Not at all – this could have been an ISIS killer, a mentally ill loner, a murderer seeking the notoriety denied to most such sordid killers of innocents, or any combination of those. That is for the investigators to determine. But we should always ask, who benefits from such evil, and who’s benefiting from the current climate of hate and terror.”

In Solingen, the investigation continues.

Photo: Police officers on Sunday lead the Solingen knife attack suspect out of the helicopter to his arraignment at the Federal Supreme Court in Karlsruhe, Germany. Photo by Ronald Wittek/EPA-EFE