According to the nation’s intelligence agency, a 19-year-old supporter of the Islamic State plotted a suicide assault during a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna on Thursday.

Two individuals were arrested by Austrian authorities on Wednesday for allegedly planning to attack one of the US celebrity’s three scheduled concerts in Vienna, which were scheduled to begin on Thursday.

Disappointed “Swifties” gathered in the Austrian city on Wednesday after all three dates were canceled.

Head of the domestic intelligence agency (DSN), Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, informed journalists that the main suspect, a 19-year-old, had confessed and “intended to carry out an attack using explosives and knives”.

Swifties, the devoted followers of American singer Taylor Swift, congregate in Vienna, Austria, following the last-minute cancellation of her concerts.
According to the nation’s intelligence agency, a 19-year-old supporter of the Islamic State plotted a suicide assault during a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna on Thursday.

Two individuals were arrested by Austrian authorities on Wednesday for allegedly planning to attack one of the US celebrity’s three scheduled concerts in Vienna, which were scheduled to begin on Thursday.

Disappointed “Swifties” gathered in the Austrian city on Wednesday after all three dates were canceled.

Head of the domestic intelligence agency (DSN), Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, informed journalists that the main suspect, a 19-year-old, had confessed and “intended to carry out an attack using explosives and knives”.

“His aim was to kill himself and a large number of people during the concert, either today or tomorrow,” he stated. The scheduled dates for the concerts were Thursday through Saturday.

According to Haijawi-Pirchner, a second suspect, a 17-year-old Austrian, worked for a facility management company that would have “provided services” at the Ernst Happel Stadium, the location of Swift’s performance.

According to Haijawi-Pirchner, the younger suspect was “in the area” of the stadium when he was taken into custody. He has thus far declined to speak with investigators.

A “blood bath” was planned, according to “concrete and detailed” preparations, according to Chancellor Karl Nehammer.

According to Interior Minister Gerhard Karner, a “tragedy was averted”.

He went on, “The situation was very serious,” especially in light of the three girls who were killed in an incident at a Taylor Swift-themed event in Britain last week.

Authorities reported that during a check of the primary suspect’s flat, they discovered detonators and explosives.

-Disappointed Swifties – Franz Ruf, Austria’s senior security official, said reporters that the two suspects had lately changed their personal circumstances.

According to him, the first suspect—an Austrian with origins in Northern Macedonia—had altered “his appearance and adapted it to Islamic State propaganda,” while the second suspect—an Austrian with Turkish or Croatian ancestry—had split up with his fiancée.

Ruf had earlier stated that the arrests were the result of intelligence obtained “from foreign partners” by the authorities, though he would not say who.

A State Department spokesperson in Washington remained silent when asked if US intelligence had assisted in thwarting the plot.

“We are discussing this with the Austrian government,” Matthew Miller, a spokesman for the State Department, stated.

They’ve stated that there is an ongoing inquiry, so I’ll let them handle the specifics.

Even though Swift’s organizers had stated that Austrian police would increase security for the concerts while downplaying any actual threat, the shows, which were anticipated to draw a combined 65,000 attendees apiece, were canceled.

Swift’s admirers congregated in Vienna’s parks and squares to express their dismay. Engineer Dilyara Joldassova, 23, who traveled from Kazakhstan for the event, expressed her sadness, calling herself “broken-hearted”.

• Major world tour – Following last week’s attack in Britain, Swift declared that she was “completely in shock.” She did not immediately comment on the decision to cancel the Vienna gigs.

The mass stabbing at a dancing lesson in Southport, England with a Swift theme resulted in the deaths of three girls and the serious injuries of five others.

The organizers made the decision to cancel, but Ruf claims that police “did everything humanly possible to ensure” that the Vienna performances “could go ahead”.

The 34-year-old celebrity was supposed to arrive in Vienna on her historic “Eras” Tour, which set out on its European leg in May and started in Paris.

Sweden, Portugal, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, and Poland have all been visited by the tour since it began in France.

The Austrian news agency APA estimated that the events will earn about 100 million euros in revenue in Austria.

By the time “Eras” ends in Vancouver in December, it will have sold over $1 billion worth of tickets, making it the first tour to do so.

In November 2020, Austria witnessed its first violent act of terrorism when a supporter of IS went on a shooting spree in Vienna, inflicting four fatalities and wounded twenty-three others before being shot by police.