Rejected Syrian asylum seeker arrested after knife attack in Germany

A failed Syrian asylum seeker has been arrested after claiming responsibility for a knife attack that left three dead and eight injured at a festival in the city of Solingen on Sunday.

A judge at the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, where the man had been flown by helicopter from Solingen, named him – without giving his last name – as Issa al H, aged 26.

The dpa news agency reported, without citing a specific source, that his asylum application had been rejected and that he should have been deported last year.

On Saturday, the Islamic State extremist group claimed responsibility for the attack, without providing evidence. The extremist group said on its news website that the attacker targeted Christians and that the perpetrator carried out the attacks Friday night “to avenge Muslims in Palestine and elsewhere.” The claim could not be independently verified.

Friday's attack has plunged the city of Solingen into a state of shock and sadness. The city of 160,000, located near Cologne and Düsseldorf, has organized a “Diversity Festival” to celebrate its 650th anniversary.

Police were alerted shortly after 9:30 p.m. local time on Friday that a man had attacked several people with a knife in the city's central square, Fronhof. The three people killed were two men aged 67 and 56 and a 56-year-old woman, authorities said. Police said the attacker appeared to have deliberately aimed for the throats of his victims.

The party, which was due to run until Sunday, was cancelled as police searched for clues in the cordoned-off square. Instead, residents gathered to mourn the dead and injured, laying flowers and messages near the scene of the attack.

“What?” asked a sign placed among the candles and teddy bears. Why?

Among those asking the question was Cord Boetther, a 62-year-old trader from Solingen.

“Why do you have to do something like this? It's incomprehensible and it hurts,” Boetther said.

Authorities had previously said a 15-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of knowing about the planned attack and failing to notify authorities, but was not the attacker. Two female witnesses told police they heard the boy and an unknown person talking before the attack about intentions consistent with bloodshed, authorities said.

The attack comes as the immigration debate heats up ahead of regional elections next Sunday in Saxony and Thuringia, where anti-immigration parties such as the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) are expected to do well. In June, Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised the country would resume deporting criminals from Afghanistan and Syria after a knife attack by an Afghan immigrant killed one police officer and injured four.

The Islamic State group declared its caliphate over much of Iraq and Syria about a decade ago, but it no longer controls any territory and has lost many key leaders. The group has barely made international headlines.

The Islamist group, however, continues to recruit members and claim responsibility for deadly attacks around the world, including deadly operations in Iran and Russia earlier this year that left dozens dead. Its sleeper cells in Syria and Iraq continue to carry out attacks against government forces in both countries as well as against US-backed Syrian fighters.