Two suspected extremists were arrested in Austria on Wednesday, one of whom appeared to be planning an attack on an event in the Vienna area such as upcoming Taylor Swift concerts, authorities said.
The 19-year-old main suspect was arrested in Ternitz, south of Vienna, and the second person in the Austrian capital.
Franz Ruf, the public security director at Austria’s interior ministry, said that authorities were aware of “preparatory actions” for a possible attack “and also that there is a focus by the 19-year-old perpetrator on the Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna,” the Austria Press Agency reported.
Ruf said the 19-year-old Austrian citizen had become radicalized on the internet and pledged an oath of allegiance to the Islamic State group in July.
Ruf said that chemical substances were secured and were being evaluated. He didn’t give more details.
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Swift has concerts scheduled at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as part of her Eras Tour. Ruf said the concerts will attract audiences of up to 65,000, with thousands more expected to congregate outside the stadium.
Security measures for the concerts will be stepped up. Ruf said that there would be a special focus among other things on entry checks and concertgoers should plan a bit more time.
Vienna police chief Gerhard Pürstl said that, while any concrete danger had been minimized, an abstract risk justified raising security.