German Suspect in Solingen Attack Allegedly Guided by Islamic State
A German court is set to hear the case of Issa Al H., a 27-year-old Syrian man accused of carrying out a deadly knife attack in the city of Solingen in August 2024, which left three people dead and ten others injured. The suspect, who is believed to have been guided by the Islamic State (IS), is accused of receiving instructions and encouragement from a suspected IS member in the days leading up to the attack.
According to a report by the Süddeutsche Zeitung, NDR and WDR, the investigation found that Al H. received a series of messages on the Telegram messaging app from a chat group linked to the IS, which included a to-do list for carrying out attacks. The messages, which were sent in the days leading up to the attack, advised the suspect to focus on physical fitness, to scout out the location of the attack and to delete online traces and use multiple phones to cover his tracks.
The suspect, who has been in custody since his arrest, is said to have made direct contact with the administrator of the Telegram group and exchanged around 60 messages with him in the 24 hours leading up to the attack. The German public prosecutor believes that the administrator, who is known by the alias “Abu Faruq al Jihadi” is a high-ranking IS member responsible for recruiting and training suicide bombers abroad.
The investigation found that Al H. had also been in contact with two other unknown men, who are believed to be linked to the IS and had shared his plans with them. The suspect is also accused of sending them videos of himself, which he had made at the behest of “Abu Faruq” and which were later spread on IS propaganda platforms after the attack.
In the days leading up to the attack, Al H. is said to have discussed the details of the attack with his suspected IS handler, including the type of weapon to use. The suspect is believed to have sent a picture of a knife to his handler, who replied that it should be shorter and sharper.
On the day of the attack, Al H. is said to have purchased a set of knives, including the one used in the attack, from a household goods store.
The case is significant because Al H. is not only accused of murder and attempted murder, but also of being a member of a terrorist organization. So far, he has remained silent in the face of the charges, but in a conversation with a psychiatrist, he is said to have mentioned that his brain had been “washed clean” by religious ideas and that he had seen the faces of dead Palestinian children and a “laughing Israeli policeman” during the attack.
A preliminary psychiatric report has found no evidence of a mental disorder and concludes that the suspect is fit to stand trial, as the attack was planned and carried out with deliberate intent.
The prosecution believes that Al H.’s islamist ideology, which is said to have been present since at least 2020, was strengthened by the Israeli reaction to a Hamas terrorist attack in October 2023 and that he sought to avenge the attacks on the Gaza Strip. His lawyer has declined to comment on the case until the trial begins.