The Hanover stabbing that occurred on 26 February 2016 was a terrorist stabbing of a police officer in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

, Germany, by a 15-year-old girl born to a Moroccan mother and a German father. She had been raised under the influence of

salafist The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generati ...

preachings, as early as 7 years. She had been investigated by the

Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (german: Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz or BfV, often ''Bundesverfassungsschutz'') is Germany's federal domestic intelligence agency. Together with the Landesämter für Verfassungss ...

for preparing a serious crime already in 2014 and had traveled to meet

ISIS Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...

members in Istanbul in November 2015. It was the first reported attack by an ISIS sympathiser in Germany.

Incident

On 26 February 2016, two police officers approached a 15-year-old and asked for her identification papers. The girl stabbed a police officer in the back of the neck at

Hanover Central Station Hannover Hauptbahnhof (German for ''Hanover main station'') is the main railway station for the city of Hanover in Lower Saxony, Germany. The railway junction is one of the 21 stations listed as a railway Category 1 station by DB Station&Servic ...

, causing severe injuries. The officer survived after surgery. After her arrest, police found a second and larger knife. This was the first reported lone-wolf terrorist attack by a sympathizer of the Islamic State in Germany.

Perpetrator

The 15-year-old perpetrator was born in Hanover to a Moroccan mother and a German father who converted to Islam. At age 7, she appeared in a video reciting the Quran with the German

Salafist The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generati ...

preacher

Pierre Vogel Pierre Vogel (born July 20, 1978), also known as Abu Hamza ( ar, أبو حمزة) is a German Islamist preacher and a former professional boxer. Early life and boxing career Vogel was born in Frechen. He turned professional at the age of 22, fi ...

. In 2014, the

, Germany's domestic intelligence agency, started investigating the girl for preparing a serious crime in 2014; NDR television reported that the day after the

November 2015 Paris attacks The November 2015 Paris attacks () were a series of coordinated Islamist terrorist attacks that took place on Friday, 13 November 2015 in Paris, France, and the city's northern suburb, Saint-Denis. Beginning at 9:15p.m., three suicide bombers ...

she described it as the "happiest day of my life", adding: "Allah bless our lions".According to a Deutsche Welle report, a family member called authorities expressing concerns over radicalisation, and police met with the family days later. In November 2015, the perpetrator traveled to

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

where she met members of

ISIL An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

, who planned to help her with entry into Syria. In January 2016 she returned to Germany. In January 2017, it was reported in court that orders to carry out a "martyrdom attack" in Germany were given.

Trial and sentencing

The trial began in October 2016; the press were banned due to the accused being a minor. Safia S. was convicted of attempted murder, helping a terrorist organization, and of grievous bodily harm, and was sentenced to 6 years in prison.

Accomplice

Mohamad Hasan K., a man born in Syria, was accused of being an accomplice of Safia. S. and of planning a separate terror attack in 2015. As co-defendant of Safia S., he was sentenced to 2.5 years in jail as he knew of the attack but failed to alert the government.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanover stabbing, 2016 2016 in Germany 21st century in Hanover February 2016 crimes in Europe February 2016 events in Germany ISIL terrorist incidents in Germany Islamic terrorism in Germany Islamic terrorist incidents in 2016 Stabbing attacks in 2016 Stabbing attacks in Germany Terrorist incidents in Germany in 2016 Terrorist incidents involving knife attacks 2010s in Lower Saxony

Incident

Perpetrator

Trial and sentencing

Accomplice

See also

References