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Knife attack in Bavaria kills 2-year-old boy, 41-year-old man: Tragedy rocks German politics

Tragedy in Aschaffenburg, Bavaria: A 28-year-old man attacks a group of children in a park. A 2-year-old child and a passerby are killed, several are seriously injured."

Knife attack in Bavaria kills 2-year-old boy, 41-year-old man: Tragedy rocks German politics

A horrific attack has shaken the Bavarian city of Aschaffenburg, where a 28-year-old man originally from Afghanistan, armed with a knife, attacked a group of children from a nursery school walking in the Schöntal park together with their teachers. Noticed by the adults, the group attempted to leave the park, but the man attacked them before they could get away. The attack therefore occurred late yesterday morning, and caused the death of a two-year-old child and a 41-year-old passerby, who heroically intervened to protect the little ones.

Three others were seriously injured: a two-year-old girl, shot in the throat, a 61-year-old man with a chest wound and a teacher, who fell while trying to escape the attack. The victims, treated at the hospital, are currently out of danger.

The attacker, who appears to be an Afghan refugee who arrived in Germany in 2020 and has been seeking asylum since 2023, he was stopped by the police a few minutes after the attack. Despite criminal record for violence and psychiatric hospitalizations on three separate occasions, he was still in the country.

Violence that shakes German politics

The attack in Aschaffenburg is part of a series of attacks that have hit Germany in recent months, further fueling the political debate on immigration and security, just a month before federal elections.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his condolences for the victims, but did not hide his indignation, declaring: “I am fed up with seeing acts of violence by people who came to us seeking protection. The authorities must clarify why the attacker was still in Germany”.

The incident fuels tensions related to immigration, central theme of the election campaign. Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), the far-right party led by Alice Weidel, took advantage of the news of the tragedy, proposing policies of forced “remigration” for irregular immigrants and refugees with criminal records.

Friedrich Merz, leader of the CDU and favourite in the elections, also announced the need for a radical reform of the right to asylum and the introduction of tighter border controls, stressing: “We can no longer tolerate episodes like this”.

Attacco con coltello in Baviera causa la morte di un bambino di 2 anni e un uomo di 41 anni: la tragedia scuote la politica tedesca

A context already marked by similar tragedies

The Attack on Aschaffenburg it is not an isolated case. Just a month ago, a Saudi doctor plowed into visitors at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, killing five and injuring around 300. And in August, another attack at a festival in Solingen left three dead and eight injured.

These episodes fuel fears and resentments in Germany which is ever closer to crucial elections, with politics increasingly divided on some issues. internal security and immigration management have become major issues of the election campaign, pushing the traditional parties to harden their positions, in an attempt not to lose consensus in favor of the AfD.

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