Germany: Why There Has Been A Steep Rise In Knife Attacks

In a recent knife attack, a woman stabbed and injured six people on a bus in western Germany on Friday evening, as reported by police. Initially, the police stated that five people were injured, but this figure was later revised.

The 32-year-old suspect, a German national, was arrested following the attack in the town of Siegen. There were at least 40 people on the bus traveling to a city festival when the incident occurred.Authorities reported that three of the victims are in life-threatening condition. Police are investigating the motive behind the crime and indicated that there are no signs suggesting it was a terrorist attack. Police also urged citizens not to spread false information on social networks or other platforms.

The incident follows a deadly knife attack in Solingen a week earlier, which deeply affected the country and led the government to announce changes to security and asylum policies. The Solingen attack resulted in three deaths and eight injuries. The suspect is a 26-year-old Syrian man who was previously scheduled for deportation to Bulgaria.

In response to the incident, Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government introduced new restrictions on carrying knives in public places and announced plans to reduce benefits for certain illegal migrants.

On Tuesday, police fatally shot a man suspected of attacking people with knives in the western town of Moers, near Solingen.

Rise in knife attacks in Germany

Germany has seen a significant increase in knife violence in recent years, and the mass stabbing incident in the western city of Solingen is likely to intensify the pressure on the government to address the issue, according to officials and analysts.

Security authorities have noted that knife attacks are particularly prevalent in city centers and at railway stations. This situation prompted the country’s interior minister, Nancy Faeser, to call for restrictions on carrying knives in public spaces earlier this month, just days before the assault at a festival in Solingen that resulted in three fatalities.

Faeser suggested reducing the permissible blade length for carrying knives to 6 cm, down from the current 12 cm, with exceptions only for household knives in sealed packaging that have just been purchased.

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10% year-on-year rise in knife attacks

She informed on August 11 that there is a desire for a general ban on dangerous switchblades, and amendments to weapons laws would be presented soon. She also mentioned that local governments should establish more weapon-free zones, particularly knife-free zones, within their communities.

Faeser highlighted the severity of the issue by describing how brutal violent acts with knives can lead to severe injuries or even death, underscoring the need for immediate action.

Police statistics indicate a nearly 10% year-on-year rise in serious bodily assaults involving a knife, totaling 8,951 cases in 2023, compared to 2022. These statistics include incidents where victims were either injured or threatened with a knife.

Federal police, responsible for security at railway stations, reported a significant increase in knife crimes there last year, with 777 attacks, and 430 cases documented in the first half of this year.

Charité hospital in Berlin reported treating as many stab wounds in the first six months of 2024 as in the entirety of 2023, according to reports, which amounts to about 50 to 55 cases.

Calls for stricter measures against knife attacks

Germany’s 16 states have been advocating for stricter federal measures to combat the surge in knife crimes. Faeser had called for enhanced police enforcement of existing weapons laws after a knife attack at a right-wing demonstration in the southwestern city of Mannheim in May, where a man injured six people before being shot and wounded by police. Among the victims was a 29-year-old police officer who intervened and was fatally stabbed.

Germany has already banned the purchase or possession of certain bladed weapons, such as butterfly knives, with violations potentially leading to a prison sentence of up to three years or a fine. Additionally, one-hand knives that can be easily opened and knives with blades 12 cm or longer are not permitted to be carried outside one’s home or property.

Following the deadly assault in Solingen, which also severely injured five people, Germany’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, pledged stringent action against the perpetrator. Scholz stated that the assailant must be quickly apprehended and punished to the fullest extent of the law, as posted on X.

Meanwhile, members of parliament from the co-ruling Social Democrats (SPD), including Scholz and Faeser’s party, have intensified their demands for stricter laws.

Far-right trying to exploit knife violence as a political issue

The far-right Alternative für Deutschland party has attempted to exploit street crime and knife violence as a political issue, especially in campaigning for three state elections next month in eastern Germany, where the party is anticipated to perform well.

Alice Weidel, the party co-leader, claimed in a television interview last month that there were “more than 15,000” knife crimes in 2023, labeling it a “record” and attributing the majority of such crimes to young immigrant men. She later corrected the previous year’s figure to 13,844, which included robberies involving a knife used to threaten the victim.

Federal police have only been collecting specific statistics on knife crime since 2021, making it challenging to perform annual comparisons, as they rely on data compiled from individual states.

Criminologists have cautioned that stricter laws are unlikely to eliminate knife assaults, as these measures are unlikely to deter young offenders, and questioned whether there are enough personnel to enforce checks in weapons-ban zones.

Renewed debate over over migration

The recent knife attack in the city of Solingen , allegedly carried out by a Syrian asylum seeker and currently under investigation by authorities as a potential act of terrorism, has reignited a heated debate over migration in Germany. This comes ahead of three state elections where the far-right, anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is anticipated to gain significant support.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz, during a visit to Solingen on Monday, expressed his anger and fury over the incident, stating that it needed to be punished quickly and severely. He indicated that the act was perceived as terrorism. Scholz also pledged to increase deportations, maintain border checks that were initially implemented during the European Championship, and tighten weapons regulations, especially regarding knife usage.

In response to the attack, Scholz promised to enhance the deportation process for rejected asylum seekers. However, this stronger stance did not prevent the three parties in his coalition government—the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the fiscally conservative Free Democrats (FDP), and the Greens—from experiencing historic losses in the European elections held shortly afterward.

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