Germany accuses Syrian minor of plotting to target Taylor Swift concert
June 27, 202538 ViewsRead Time: 2 minutes
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The German public prosecutor's office has charged a Syrian youth suspected of supporting ISIS with involvement in a plot to attack a concert by American singer Taylor Swift in Vienna in 2024.
In a statement today, Friday, it was explained that the accused, partially known as "Mohammed A," faces charges of supporting a foreign terrorist organization and preparing for a serious act of violence that threatens national security.
The accused, who was a minor at the time, began embracing ISIS ideology as of at least April of last year, and by July, he was in contact with a young man from Austria who was planning to carry out a bombing at one of Swift's concerts, according to the German federal prosecutor.
The statement indicated that the accused assisted the young man in his preparations, including translating bomb-making instructions from Arabic and communicating online with an ISIS member abroad.
The accused also provided the young man with a "pledge of allegiance document to ISIS, which the latter used to join the organization."
Mohammed A was first arrested in September last year in Frankfurt an der Oder, eastern Germany, where he was 15 years old and attending school, but was later released.
The Federal Prosecutor's Office in Karlsruhe stated that the indictment was filed on June 17 before the Higher Regional Court in Berlin, which will later decide whether the charges are admissible for trial.
Three concerts by Taylor Swift in Vienna as part of her record-breaking "Reputation Tour" were canceled last summer after warnings of a terrorist plot by ISIS sympathizers.
Police arrested three suspects, including a 19-year-old Austrian of North Macedonian descent, as part of the investigation into the plot, while the United States confirmed providing intelligence information to support the investigation.
Swift later wrote on Instagram: "The reason for the cancellation makes me feel a new fear, and a huge guilt because many had planned to attend those concerts."
