Three people have been stabbed in Switzerland after a knife-wielding man unleashed a violent attack in a train station.
The incident at the Winterthur railway station unfolded on Thursday morning when 31-year-old Nesip Dedler allegedly wounded three people with a bladed weapon.
Footage from the scene showed the alleged knifeman running past a group of terrified young school children with a weapon in hand as their teacher tried to shield them.
Multiple witnesses claimed that the knifeman shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’, an Arabic phrase meaning God is great, as he unleashed his violent rampage and ran past the school group.
One person was seriously wounded, and two others sustained moderate injuries and were hospitalised, Swiss news outlet Blick reports. The victims are all Swiss citizens aged 28, 43, and 52.
The attack has been described as a ‘terrorist act,’ with Mario Fehr, in charge of security in the Swiss canton of Zurich, telling reporters during a press briefing this afternoon that it was ‘clear from the scene that the motive for this act must be sought in the realm of radicalisation and extremism.’
One passerby told news outlet Blick: ‘I heard a man behind me shout ‘Allahu Akbar’ five or six times in a very emotional and agitated manner.’
Images shared by several Swiss media outlets and on social media showed a man with long brown hair, wearing a black t-shirt and grey shorts, being escorted by police following his arrest.
Emergency services – including ten to fifteen police cars – rushed to the scene.
Images showed cops patrolling the area, where a privacy screen was set up.
The attacks took place across several locations near the train station, according to local media.
One witness, a taxi driver who drove past the scene of the incident, said he had seen a man walking around the underpass and attacking people.
Security officials said today that suspect Dedeler, a Swiss-Turkish dual national, had contacted police on Sunday, making ‘incoherent statements.’
Cops referred him to a psychiatric clinic in Winterthur, but he was released on Wednesday after doctors concluded that he no longer posed a danger to himself or to others, Swiss outlet SRF reports.
‘Apparently, this assessment was incorrect,’ Fehr stated.
Dedler, a Swiss-Turkish dual-national, was already known to authorities, SRF reported, and had been investigated by authorities in connection with a series of violent incidents at the An’Nur Mosque in Winterthur, which was later forced to close.
According to SRF, Dedler, a jihadist supporter, was born in Switzerland and became a Swiss citizen in 2009. He moved to Turkey in 2024 and returned to Switzerland this month.
The Zurich cantonal police are conducting an intensive investigation to clarify the background of the attack and make a final determination on the motive of the attack, he said.
Winterthur has about 123,000 residents and is located in northeastern Switzerland, near the country’s biggest city, Zurich.
This is a breaking news story, more to follow.
