Knife attack in Germany leaves 3 dead, 4 injured

German media report that a knife attack at the Fronhof festival in western Germany has left seven people dead.

According to Deutsche Welle, citing Solingen city police, the attack occurred late on Friday, August 23, around 10 p.m. local time, when an unidentified man attacked several people with a knife before fleeing the scene when police arrived.

Police said the attack took place during a festival celebrating the 650th anniversary of Solingen, a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state in western Germany.

The attack reportedly took place on the Fronhof market square in Solingen, where a concert was taking place. Security forces have cordoned off the city centre and efforts to identify the attacker are ongoing.

Knife attacks involving deadly violence are nothing new in Germany. One of the most notorious incidents was when an Afghan migrant attacked a group of protesters in Mannheim, resulting in the death of a police officer.

Last week, the German Interior Ministry announced plans to tighten restrictions on carrying knives in public, citing a rise in knife-related crime.

According to Deutsche Welle, 380 knife-related crimes were committed at German train stations in the first half of this year.

The incident has once again raised concerns about public safety and the effectiveness of current measures to prevent such violent attacks. Authorities are under increasing pressure to implement stricter regulations to address the growing trend of knife-related violence in Germany.