Austrian man admits planning terrorist attack at Taylor Swift concert
An Austrian man pleaded guilty Tuesday to planning a terrorist attack in 2024 at a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna.
Beran Aliji, 21, is one of two people accused of plotting the foiled attack, which was to take place Aug. 8 during one of the stops on Swift’s Eras Tour. Officials canceled that concert and two others by Swift planned for the site at Ernst Happel Stadium. More than 195,000 people were to attend the concerts.
Aliji’s trial on charges of joining a terrorist organization (the Islamic State), preparing explosives and attempting to illegally obtain firearms was set to start Tuesday. He and the other man arrested in the planned attack were also accused of planning attacks in Mecca, Istanbul, Turkey, and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. They each face up to 20 years in prison. A teenager was also charged for helping to prepare for the planned attacks.
Aliji had an almost-complete bomb at his house, the state prosecutor told the court, the BBC reported. The indictment said that he had obtained instructions on how to make shrapnel bomb via the internet.
USA Today reported that officials said Aliji planned to drive a car into the crowd at the stadium, set off a bomb and attack concertgoers with bladed weapons.
“He wanted to carry out an attack in the area outside the stadium, killing as many people as possible using the knives or even using the explosive devices he had made,” said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, Austria’s national intelligence chief.
The BBC reported that Swift learned about the issue while she was on a plane on her way to Austria. She later said on social media that the cancellations were “devastating,” but that “I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we are grieving concerts and not lives.”
People who had planned to attend the concert gathered in various parts of the city after the cancellations, singing Swift songs and exchanging friendship bracelets. The Eras Tour included 149 concerts and sold more than 10 million tickets.
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