[ad_1]
After the bloody terrorist attack in the center of Vienna, the Austrian government wants to crack down on Islamist structures in the country. Several radical Islamic mosques in the country are scheduled to be closed. Integration Minister Susanne Raab and Interior Minister Karl Nehammer (both ÖVP) announced this in Vienna.
“The terrorist attack on Monday was directed at all of us, regardless of religion or origin,” Raab said. “The goal of Islamist terror is to drive a wedge in our society. We will not allow that to happen.”
The attacker had visited two radical Islamist mosques.
Last Monday, the Islamist Kujtim F., who grew up in Austria, killed four people and injured 23, some seriously, in the center of Vienna. In the course of the investigation, the authorities arrested several of F.’s contacts during house searches. Raids were also carried out in Germany.
According to Raab, the killer had visited two mosques in Vienna in advance: the Melit Ibrahim mosque in the Ottakring district and the Tewhid mosque in Vienna-Meidling. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution informed the Minister of Education that these mosques had contributed to the radicalization of the attacker. In the past, the Ottakring Mosque is said to have been the meeting place for several convicted ISIS supporters.
With a view to public safety, these mosques should be closed immediately, Raab said. “All of this is not an attack against members of a religious community, but a joint fight against the abuse of religion by radicals,” the minister said.
The authorities had previously met with the Austrian Islamic Religious Community (IGGÖ) for a crisis meeting. The IGGÖ later announced that it had received information “showing that a mosque community registered with it violates its doctrine and constitution, as well as the Islamic Law of 2015.” To avoid any danger in the delay, the IGGÖ had lifted the legal personality of the mosque community.
The Minister of the Interior admits deficiencies in the protection of the constitution
According to Interior Minister Nehammer, there have been 18 house searches in Austria since Tuesday, as well as four in Germany and two more in Switzerland. According to the police, the attacker’s contacts in Germany were known to the Austrian Constitution Protection Office in July. Consequently, Nehammer admitted omissions in F.’s observation in the past: “There have been obvious mistakes that we cannot tolerate.” He promised to “lift” complaints with the Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
However, it emerged on Friday that of the 16 men arrested in connection with the terrorist attack in Austria, six had been released. With them, the suspicion would not have been confirmed, said the spokesman of the Public Ministry, Nina Bussek, according to the “Standard”. Pre-trial detention has been requested for eight and two suspects have not yet been admitted to prison.
The men are suspected of having contributed to the attack in Vienna or even to the crime of participation in a terrorist group or criminal organization.
