On Monday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised to toughen knife possession laws and increase deportations in the Central European country after he visited the site of a recent mass stabbing attack in Solingen.
Accompanied by regional officials at a makeshift memorial for the victims, Scholz told reporters that he was “furious and angry” over the murders of three and the injuries of eight individuals who were attending a ‘Diversity Festival’ that took place Saturday to celebrate the Westphalian city’s 650th anniversary.
On Sunday, authorities revealed that they apprehended a single suspect, identified as a 23-year-old from Syria who had previously been denied asylum and evaded removal in 2023. The alleged perpetrator is accused of carrying out the crimes on behalf of the Islamic State, claiming he sought to "avenge Muslims in Palestine and elsewhere."
The incident comes as the government in Berlin tightened immigration regulations in January and pledged to speed up repatriation efforts after a similar event occurred earlier this summer in Mannheim when a police officer was killed and five were wounded by an Afghan migrant residing illegally in Germany.
Related Story: Berlin Considers Afghan Deportations After Murder of Police Officer
