According to Reuters, the Austrian Interior Ministry confirmed on August 9 that it had arrested an 18-year-old Iraqi man to investigate a terrorist plot against singer Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna.
The source said the young man had “pledged allegiance” to the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) on August 6. However, Austrian authorities are still investigating whether he was involved in a terrorist plot.
Previously on August 7, the organizers of Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour suddenly announced the cancellation of three of Taylor Swift’s performances in the capital Vienna due to the risk of terrorism.
The Austrian government also announced that it had foiled a terrorist plot targeting Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna.
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By August 8, Austrian authorities had arrested three Austrian suspects, aged 15, 17 and 19, of whom the main suspect was a 19-year-old Austrian of North Macedonian origin and an IS supporter.
“The main suspect said he planned to carry out an attack with explosives and a knife. His main goal was to kill many people during the concerts on August 8 and 9 and then commit suicide,” Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, director of Austria’s domestic intelligence agency (DNS), said on August 8.
“The main suspect has confessed that he intended to carry out a suicide attack with two other accomplices,” Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer added.
Each of Taylor Swift’s shows in Austria is expected to attract about 65,000 fans at the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna.
Speaking at a press conference on August 8, Franz Ruf, Director General of Public Security at the Austrian Ministry of the Interior, said investigators discovered chemicals, machetes and other technical equipment used to prepare for terrorist acts at the main suspect’s home in the town of Ternitz, Niederösterreich state, eastern Austria.
Thus, as of August 9, Austria has arrested four teenagers aged 15 to 19 on charges of plotting a terrorist attack in the capital Vienna.
Many fans in Austria expressed shock at the news, but still hoped that the organizers of The Eras Tour would only postpone, rather than cancel, the three shows in Vienna. Meanwhile, many gathered at the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna, Austria, to exchange handmade bracelets after the shows could not be held.
The exchange of handmade bracelets is known to be a special activity that often takes place during The Eras Tour shows.
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