Another attack on a music festival, this time in Germany. No one is using the T-word yet but some reports say this was a random attack using a knife. The attacker is still at large. This is a Google translated version of the story from Bild, the German news site which broke the news. They are reporting three people have died. Also a possible description which has not been confirmed by authorities:

At around 9.45 p.m. a man in Solingen randomly stabbed passers-by with a knife. The perpetrator, according to witnesses an Arab-looking man, is on the run.

According to initial information, there are three dead and four seriously injured. Dozens of rescue workers are busy resuscitating the injured. The scene of the crime is the Fronhof, a busy square in the city center where a stage was set up for the city festival and live bands were playing.

Here's another translated report from the local paper in Solingen, Germany which includes some eyewitness accounts.

Eyewitnesses report that the suspected perpetrator fled in the direction of the main road. Official confirmations are still lacking. No arrests have been made yet, reports the German Press Agency, citing police sources. Officers are currently at the scene with weapons and are securing it. There are cordons all over the city. Screens have been erected...

Many visitors to the event are in shock. Especially those who were in the immediate vicinity of the incident - like Lars Breitzke. According to his own statement, he was standing in front of the stage at the Fronhof when the incident apparently occurred a few meters away from him.

Suzan Köcher's Suprafon was playing on stage. Suddenly he realized from the expression on the singer Suzan Köcher's face that something was wrong. "And then a person fell over just a meter away from me," says Breitzke. At first he thought it was a drunk. But when he turned around, he saw other people lying on the floor. And several pools of blood. He himself was unharmed.

I've never been to Solingen but GB News says it's a mid-size city of 160,000. This weekend festival was intended to be a celebration of its 650th anniversary and I'm seeing reports it was called a "Festival of Diversity."

At least nine people stabbed, several dead, by what appears to be a lone perp, around an hour ago, at a 'diversity festival', in the center of the town I live in, #Solingen, Germany. Perp on the run, perp & reasons unknown, massive manhunt underway. pic.twitter.com/hoCMtiqdMT

— Tim Skellett (@Gurdur) August 23, 2024

Just awful.

BREAKING:

At least 3 stabbed to death at “diversity festival” in Solingen, Germany 🇩🇪

People are still receiving CPR treatment on the scene, but several bodies have also been covered with sheets.@BILD reports that eyewitnesses say an “Arab-looking man” started stabbing people pic.twitter.com/2443bpZZjR

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) August 23, 2024

Of course early reports sometimes get the details wrong so best to take all of this as provisional at this point. Hopefully police will either have this guy in custody soon. Once that happens we'll have a pretty good idea what motivated him. If this was what it clearly looks like at the moment, he'll probably be happy to take credit.

Note that the image above is from a different police action in Solingen a decade ago and does not show the arrest of the suspect in this attack. 

I'll update this post later tonight if there are any big developments.

Update: Reports now say the authorities are treating this as a terror attack. The attacker is still on the run but a 15-year-old boy he was seen with has been arrested for failing to report a planned attack. Also, there's this.

The suspected knife terrorist from Solingen apparently shouted “Allahu Akbar” (English: God is great) during his attack.

WELT AM SONNTAG (which, like BILD, belongs to Axel Springer) reported this , citing an internal police report. This was reported by a witness. The slogan is often used by Islamists in terrorist attacks.

One of the injured victims is also said to have stated that they knew the attacker “from Solingen” and that he was a visitor to a local mosque.

So this is going to turn out to be exactly what it looked like. We'll know more once they catch this guy.