German prosecutor seeks arrest on terror charges of a Syrian man who allegedly stabbed 4

Police and forensic investigators are on the scene following an attack in the western city of Bielefeld, Germany, May 18, 2025. (File/AP)
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Updated 25 June 2025
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German prosecutor seeks arrest on terror charges of a Syrian man who allegedly stabbed 4

  • Last month, the defendant attacked several people with a knife outside a restaurant in downtown Bielefeld in the early morning
  • Prosecutors allege that the suspect joined the Daesh group in Syria in December 2014 at the latest in the city of Raqqa in Syria

BERLIN: Germany’s top prosecutor on Wednesday submitted a new arrest warrant based on terrorism allegations for a Syrian man who stabbed and critically injured four men outside a restaurant in the western city of Bielefeld last month.
The federal prosecutor’s office said in a statement that the accused, who has only been identified as Mahmoud M. in line with German privacy rules, “is urgently suspected of membership of a foreign terrorist organization, attempted murder and dangerous bodily harm.”
Last month, the defendant attacked several people with a knife outside a restaurant in downtown Bielefeld in the early morning. Four men were seriously injured.
Prosecutors allege that the suspect follows an Islamist-jihadist ideology. He joined the Daesh group in Syria in December 2014 at the latest in the city of Raqqa in Syria, they said.
After entering Germany, prosecutors said the accused decided to kill as many randomly selected people in Germany as possible. He did so ”in the name of a global ‘holy war’ and on behalf of Islamic State,” they added.
“To this end, in the early morning of May 18, 2025, he stabbed guests with knives in front of a restaurant in Bielefeld, critically injuring four people,” the prosecutors said.
The newly submitted arrest warrant replaces an arrest warrant issued by a Bielefeld local court on May 20, which had been obtained by the Bielefeld public prosecutor’s office. M. was arrested on May 19, and has been in custody since then. On May 20, the federal prosecutor’s office had taken over the investigation.
Among other things, the federal prosecutor’s office takes over terrorism-related cases from local prosecutors in Germany.


Tens of thousands attend funeral of killed Bangladesh student leader

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Tens of thousands attend funeral of killed Bangladesh student leader

  • Tens of thousands of mourners gathered in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Saturday for the funeral of a student leader, after two days of violent protests over his killing
DHAKA: Tens of thousands of mourners gathered in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Saturday for the funeral of a student leader, after two days of violent protests over his killing.
Huge crowds accompanied the funeral procession of Sharif Osman Hadi, a key figure in last year’s pro-democracy uprising who died in a hospital in Singapore on Thursday after being shot by masked gunmen while leaving a Dhaka mosque.
Police wearing body cameras were deployed in front of the parliament building where the funeral prayers were held.
Hadi’s body, which was brought to the capital on Friday, was buried at the central mosque of Dhaka University.
“We have not come here to say goodbye,” interim leader Muhammad Yunus said in an emotional speech.
“You are in our hearts and you will remain in the heart of all Bangladeshis as long as the country exists.”
Hadi, 32, was an outspoken critic of India and was set to contest the general elections in February.
Iqbal Hossain Saikot, a government employee who traveled from afar to attend the prayers, said Hadi was killed because he staunchly opposed India.
He will continue to live “among the millions of Bangladeshi people who love the land and its sovereign territory,” Saikot, 34, told AFP.
Hadi’s death has triggered widespread unrest, with protesters across the South Asian nation demanding the arrest of those responsible.
Late Thursday, people set fire to several buildings in Dhaka including the offices of leading newspapers Prothom Alo and the Daily Star.
Critics accuse the publications of favoring neighboring India, where Bangladesh’s ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina has taken refuge since fleeing Dhaka in the wake of the 2024 uprising.
Rights group Amnesty International on Saturday urged Bangladesh’s interim government to carry out “prompt, thorough, independent and impartial” investigations into Hadi’s killing and the violence that followed.
It also expressed alarm over the lynching of Hindu garment worker Dipu Chandra Das following allegations of blasphemy.
Yunus said seven suspects had been arrested in connection with Das’s killing in the central district of Mymensingh on Thursday.