BERLIN — Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s response to a fatal knife attack allegedly perpetrated by an Afghan man in southern Germany on Wednesday marks a clear shift in his rhetoric on migration ahead of a national election.
The attack on a group of pre-school children killed two — including a two-year-old boy — shocking Germans at a time when migration has become a pivotal issue ahead of the Feb. 23 vote.
“I am tired of these violent crimes occurring every few weeks, perpetrated by individuals who came to us seeking protection,” the chancellor said. “Misguided tolerance has no place here.”
The suspect in the stabbing, a 28-year-old Afghan, arrived in Germany in late 2022 and subsequently applied for asylum, according to the Joachim Hermann, Bavaria’s interior minister. The suspect was previously treated in a psychiatric facility, according to Hermann, and authorities suspect mental illness played a role in the attack.
The suspect declared intent to leave Germany in December 2024, but remained in the country. Authorities say there is no evidence of a political motive.
Scholz called for an urgent investigation into the case, questioning why the suspect remained in Germany. “Authorities must urgently investigate why the attacker was still here, and immediate consequences must follow,” he said.
The chancellor’s unusually strong words come as his election opponents hammer him on his government’s migration policies. Alice Weidel, the chancellor candidate for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), also wasted no time in attacking the conservative Christian Social Union party, which governs in Bavaria.
“Remigration now!” Weidel wrote in a post on X, employing a far-right euphemism for a policy of mass deportations. One of the AfD’s core election messages is that crime is linked to migration and traditional parties are incapable of maintaining public safety.
It’s not just the AfD that is leaning into public frustration on migration. Friedrich Merz, the conservative chancellor candidate belonging to the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), is also vowing to reduce migration and increase security. The conservatives lead in polls at 30 percent, while the AfD is second at 21 percent.
Scholz’s tone in the aftermath of the knife attack Wednesday marks a departure from his past responses to violent incidents. After an Aug. 2024 attack in Solingen by a Syrian asylum seeker with an Islamist motive, the chancellor stressed solutions such as a stricter weapons laws.
In December, responding to an attack on a Christmas market in the eastern city of Magdeburg which ultimately left six dead, Scholz called for unity to “not let hatred divide us.”
The two-year-old who died in the stabbing Wednesday was of Moroccan heritage, according to Hermann. A 41-year old man was also killed in the attack. Authorities presume the man was a passerby trying to protect the children.
“At the moment, the speculation is very much in the direction of his obvious mental illness,” Hermann said of the attacker.
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