Five people killed in Vienna attack linked to ISIS

Five people are dead after an attacker later identified as an Islamist extremist opened fire on a crowd in Vienna’s nightlife district Monday evening.

According to The Associated Press, the suspected attacker, later named as 20-year-old Kujtim Fejzulai, was armed with an automatic rifle and a fake explosive vest as we walked through Austria’s capital. 

Unverified video showed the suspect, dressed in white coveralls, firing off rounds as he ran down Vienna’s cobblestone streets.

Austrian authorities said police shot and killed the suspect upon arriving at the scene. 

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said two men and two women died from their injuries in the attack, adding that a police officer who tried to stop the attacker was shot and wounded, and another 14 people were hurt.

Vienna’s hospital service said seven people were in life-threatening condition Tuesday after the attack, according to the AP. 

“Yesterday’s attack was clearly an Islamist terror attack,” Kurz said. “It was an attack out of hatred — hatred for our fundamental values, hatred for our way of life, hatred for our democracy in which all people have equal rights and dignity.”

Reuters reported Tuesday that Austrian police are looking for other suspects in connection with the attack. 

According to Austrian authorities, the suspect was sentenced to 22 months in prison in April 2019 for attempting to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State, although he was given early release in December. 

President Trump responded to the attack in a tweet late Monday evening, writing, “Our prayers are with the people of Vienna after yet another vile act of terrorism in Europe.” 

“These evil attacks against innocent people must stop,” Trump tweeted. “The U.S. stands with Austria, France, and all of Europe in the fight against terrorists, including radical Islamic terrorists.”

Our prayers are with the people of Vienna after yet another vile act of terrorism in Europe. These evil attacks against innocent people must stop. The U.S. stands with Austria, France, and all of Europe in the fight against terrorists, including radical Islamic terrorists.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 2, 2020

Last week, an attacker holding knives and a copy of the Quran killed three people before being wounded and taken into custody after a confrontation with police outside Notre Dame Church in Nice, France. 

The attack followed another earlier this month in which a French middle school teacher was beheaded after showing his class caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad, an action some students’ parents strongly condemned.