San Francisco Frontiers - Syrian jailed for life over deadly knife attack at German festival

The court in Duesseldorf said Issa Al Hasan, 27, was a member of the Islamic State group and had acted out of "treacherous and base motives".

The stabbing spree in August 2024, in which another eight people were seriously wounded, took place on the opening night of a three-day "festival of diversity".

It was one of a series of attacks attributed to asylum seekers and migrants that pushed immigration to the top of the political agenda ahead of a general election in Germany early this year.

When prosecutors charged him in February, they said they believed Hasan had been in contact with representatives of the Islamic State group ahead of the attack.

The suspect set out to harm "non-believers" at the festival because "he saw them as representatives of Western society", said prosecutors -- but also "to take revenge against them for the military actions of Western states".

IS later said in a statement by its Amaq news agency on the Telegram messaging app that "a soldier" of the group had carried out the attack in "revenge" for Muslims "in Palestine and everywhere".

Hasan made a full confession during his trial, which was held under tight security in Duesseldorf.

In a statement read out by his lawyer, he admitted having "committed a grave crime".

"Three people died at my hands. I seriously injured others," he said.

"Some of them survived only by luck. They could have died, too... I deserve and expect a life sentence."

J.Scott--SFF