Trial begins for man charged with attempted murder at Berlin Holocaust memorial

"A 19-year-old Syrian went on trial in Berlin on Thursday over a knife attack on a Spanish tourist at the German capital's Holocaust memorial days before February's general election. The suspect, partially named as Wassim Al M., is accused of being a supporter of the Islamic State group who intended to "target a person of the Jewish faith", according to the court."

"He allegedly approached the 30-year-old victim from behind among the concrete steles of the memorial and "inflicted a 14-centimetre-long cut to his throat with a knife", the court said in a statement before the trial. The victim, who was visiting the memorial with two friends, was badly injured but managed to stagger out of the steles before collapsing in front of the memorial."

"A police officer told the court he was on duty outside the US embassy, near the memorial, when he heard people crying for the police. "I went over and saw the victim clutching his throat," the officer said, recalling that a passer-by had phoned emergency services. "The attacked tourist turned pale and his eyes closed" while they were waiting for an ambulance, he said."

"Prosecutors told the court that Wassim Al M. had "internalised IS ideology, rejected the Western way of life, and was convinced that a holy war against infidels must be waged worldwide". He shouted "Allahu akbar", or God is the greatest, after the attack, the court was told. The suspect had travelled to Berlin from his home in the eastern city of Leipzig, according to the court, motivated by his support for IS and "driven by the escalation of the Middle East conflict"."

A 19-year-old Syrian went on trial in Berlin for a knife attack on a 30-year-old Spanish tourist at the Holocaust memorial days before a general election. The suspect, partially named as Wassim Al M., is accused of supporting Islamic State and intending to target a person of the Jewish faith. He allegedly approached the victim from behind among the memorial's concrete steles and inflicted a 14-centimetre cut to the throat. The victim staggered out before collapsing and was badly injured. Witnesses and a police officer described the scene. Prosecutors say he had internalised IS ideology, shouted 'Allahu akbar', travelled from Leipzig to Berlin, sent a photo offering himself to IS, and 'wanted to kill'.

Read at The Local Germany