Germany: Federal Prosecutor Takes Over Bielefeld Stabbing Case. Religious Motive Suspected

In the past couple of days, we have been following the mass knife attack in Bielefeld, Germany that seriously injured 4 people early Sunday morning. The suspected attacker is a Syrian refugee named Mahmoud Mhemed (35). After a manhunt that lasted all day Sunday, Mhemed was captured near Dusseldorf. He was taken into custody after briefly resisting arrest.

Now, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe has stepped into the investigation based on indications that the suspect was acting out of Islamist-inspired motivation.

The article below from Stimme (De) is translated by Fousesquawk. Note that only certain paragraphs pertinent to this update are translated. The other paragraphs merely repeat facts previously reported and translated here. The breaks are indicated by (…).

Attack in Bielefeld religiously motivated? Federal Prosecutor’s office in Karlsruhe is investigating.

May 20, 2025-19:00

During the weekend, a man critically injured 4 people with a knife in front of a bar in Bielefeld. Now the Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe is investigating the case.

After the attack by a man against at least 4 people in front of a bar in Bielefeld, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office has taken over the investigation due to a possible religious motivation. There is a compelling suspicion in the attempted murder and dangerous bodily injury, the Karlsruhe authorities announce.

The suspect is accused of deliberately stabbing patrons with knives and critically injuring 4 people. It is suspected that the act was religiously motivated and is understood as an attack on the free, democratic order. “So that it is likely to compromise the internal security of the Federal Republic of Germany,” the Federal Prosecutor’s Office stated. 

(…) The suspect is from Syria and lives in Harsewinkel near Bielefeld. He was not previously known to police. According to North Rhine-Westphalia Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU), the Syrian traveled to Europe through Turkey. In December 2023, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees granted him temporary protected status after he filed an asylum request in Germany. The investigators also followed indications of the suspect’s contacts with the Islamist scene.

Justice Minister: Knife attack in Bielefeld was probably Islamist-motivated

Federal Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig (SPD) said on Tuesday that indications had grown that the perpetrator acted out of an Islamist motivation. Islamist terrorism is one of the greatest dangers to security in Germany. “The knife attack in Bielefeld early Sunday morning was of shocking brutality. Several (victims) barely escaped with their lives,” she added.

(….)