An Iranian-born man with a knife injured 10 people in an attack aboard a bus in northern Germany before being overpowered by passengers and arrested by police, the local prosecutor said.

The authorities on July 20 said there was no information on the motive for the attack on a local bus in the northern city of Luebeck. They added they had no immediate indication the suspect had any links to terrorism or had been radicalized.

Officials originally said 14 people had been injured but later reduced the number. At least three were listed in serious condition.

A spokeswoman for the Luebeck prosecutor's office said the 34-year-old suspect was born in Iran but that he was a longtime Luebeck resident with German citizenship. Authorities in Germany generally do not release the names of criminal suspects.

The man has refused to speak to investigators and is scheduled to appear in court on July 21, officials said.

The prosecutor’s office said the incident began when the attacker set fire to a backpack on the bus.

The driver said he stopped the bus after seeing smoke and was attacked by the suspect.

As the assailant left the bus, he stabbed several people with a 13-centimeter kitchen knife, the driver said.

Passengers then overpowered the man outside the bus and held him for police.

Investigators said flammable liquid was found in the backpack but no explosives.

Luebeck is near the Baltic coast and northeast of Hamburg.

Based on reporting by Reuters, dpa, and AFP </s> Eight people are reported to have been injured after a man armed with a knife attacked passengers on a bus in the northern German city of Luebeck.

Eight people are reported to have been injured after a man armed with a knife attacked passengers on a bus in the northern German city of Luebeck.

Man arrested after eight hurt in knife attack on bus in northern Germany

The suspect was overpowered and arrested after the incident on the busy service north-east of Hamburg, near the Baltic coast.

Details of what exactly happened are sketchy, and authorities had no immediate information on the assailant’s motive.

A spokeswoman for prosecutors, Ulla Hingst, told n-tv television that the bus driver stopped the vehicle and let the passengers out after the attack. She said the weapon that the assailant apparently used was a knife, although that is still under investigation.

Experts were also examining a backpack on the bus as a precaution.

Ms Hingst said it was not clear whether the luggage belonged to the suspect, but said there had been reports of smoke coming out of the backpack.

She said the identity of the suspect, who was being questioned by police, has yet to be confirmed.

“The background to this act is completely unclear,” she said.

“We are investigating in all directions. We cannot currently rule anything out.”

German news agency dpa quoted police as saying that three people received “medium-serious” injuries in the incident, while five others received minor injuries.

Ms Hingst said the total number of injuries was not clear, but said there was one serious injury. </s> File: A knife attacker on Germany bus arrested and several people were injured. Photo: Pixabay

BERLIN – Several people were injured Friday in an attack by a man wielding a knife on a bus in northern Germany, officials said Friday, although his motive remained unclear.

The packed bus was heading in the direction of Travemuende, a popular beach destination close to the city of Luebeck, when a man pulled a weapon on passengers, local media Luebecker Nachrichten reported, quoting an unnamed witness.

The bus driver immediately stopped the vehicle, allowing passengers to escape, the daily said on its website.

"The passengers jumped out of the bus and were screaming. It was terrible. Then the injured were brought out. The perpetrator had a kitchen knife," a witness who lives close to the scene, Lothar H., told the daily.

An unnamed female passenger on the bus said one of those injured had only just given up his seat to an elderly woman, "when the perpetrator stabbed him in the chest."

A police car which happened to be close by arrived at the scene quickly, allowing officers to detain the assailant, added the report.

Confirming that a man went at fellow passengers on the bus with a knife, Luebeck chief prosecutor Ursula Hingst added: "We will not release information on the identity of the man nor the motive of the act."

Police from the state of Schleswig-Holstein meanwhile said on Twitter that "people were injured. No one was killed. The perpetrator was overpowered and is now in police custody."

According to Luebecker Nachrichten, an attacker is an Iranian man in his mid-30s.

While neither the motive nor full identity of the perpetrator have been established, Germany has been on high alert after several deadly Islamist extremist attacks. </s> Several people were injured Friday in an attack by a man wielding a knife on a bus in northern Germany, officials said Friday, although his motive remained unclear.

The bus driver immediately stopped the vehicle, allowing passengers to escape, the daily said on its website.

"The passengers jumped out of the bus and were screaming. It was terrible. Then the injured were brought out. The perpetrator had a kitchen knife," a witness who lives close to the scene, Lothar H., told the daily.

An unnamed female passenger on the bus said one of those injured had only just given up his seat to an elderly woman, "when the perpetrator stabbed him in the chest."

A police car which happened to be close by arrived at the scene quickly, allowing officers to detain the assailant, added the report.

Confirming that a man went at fellow passengers on the bus with a knife, Luebeck chief prosecutor Ursula Hingst added: "We will not release information on the identity of the man nor the motive of the act."

Police from the state of Schleswig-Holstein meanwhile said on Twitter that "people were injured. No one was killed. The perpetrator was overpowered and is now in police custody."

According to Luebecker Nachrichten, the attacker is an Iranian man in his mid-30s.

While neither the motive nor full identity of the perpetrator have been established, Germany has been on high alert after several deadly extremist attacks. </s> A man armed with a kitchen knife attacked passengers Friday on a crowded city bus in northern Germany before being overpowered and arrested, authorities said. Ten people were injured, three of them seriously.

Authorities had no immediate information on the assailant’s motive for the afternoon attack on a city bus in Luebeck, near the Baltic coast northeast of Hamburg, but said they had no indication that he was politically radicalized or had any terrorist background.

Investigators found a flammable substance in a backpack aboard the bus, but no explosives.

The incident started when the assailant set fire to the backpack, prosecutor Ulla Hingst said at a Friday evening news conference in Luebeck.

The driver told investigators that he stopped the bus and opened all the doors to let passengers out after noticing the fire in his rear-view mirror.

He then walked back to find out what was going on and was hit by the assailant, Hingst said. As the suspect left the bus, he stabbed people around him with a 13-centimeter (5-inch) kitchen knife. The attacker was overpowered by passengers outside the vehicle, then quickly arrested by police nearby.

Five of the victims were still hospitalized Friday evening.

The suspect is a 34-year-old man who lives locally. Hingst said he is a longtime German citizen who was born in Iran.

“There are no indications that the man was in any way politically radicalized,” Hingst said. “For that reason we have, as the investigation currently stands, no indications that there was a terrorist background to this act.”

She added the motive is “still open” and “we are investigating in all directions.”

Prosecutors will seek to have the man kept in custody pending possible charges of bodily harm and attempted arson, Hingst said.

The bus was traveling from Luebeck to the neighboring seaside resort of Travemuende, where an annual regatta, the Travemuender Woche, was opening later Friday.

Schleswig-Holstein’s state interior minister, Hans-Joachim Grote, said there was no reason to believe that there was an increased risk to the regatta but police presence there was stepped up as a precaution. </s> At least eight people have reportedly been wounded, two of them seriously, in a knife attack on a bus in Germany.

At least eight people have reportedly been wounded, two of them seriously, in a knife attack on a bus in Germany.

At least eight injured in knife attack on bus in Germany

A suspect - believed to be in his mid-30s - was arrested after the stabbings in the northern city of Luebeck on Friday afternoon. The motive is unclear.

The packed bus was heading in the direction of Travemuende, a popular beach, when a man pulled a weapon on passengers, according to local media.

The bus driver immediately stopped the vehicle, allowing passengers to escape, local newspaper Luebecker Nachrichten reported.

A police crew that happened to be nearby was able to get to the scene quickly, allowing officers to detain the suspect.

"The passengers jumped out of the bus and were screaming," said Lothar H, a witness who lives close to the scene.

"It was terrible. Then the injured were brought out. The perpetrator had a kitchen knife."

Police spokesman Duerk Duerbrook said the attack happened in the Kuecknitz district of Luebeck - around 40 miles northeast of Hamburg.

He said authorities were still trying to determine the circumstances of the attack.

The force described it as a "major police deployment", adding that there had been no fatalities.

"There is currently a major police deployment in Luebeck," the police force wrote on Twitter. We are examining the situation and will give more information later."

While the motive has not been established, Germany has been on high alert after several deadly Islamist extremist attacks. </s> A man apparently armed with a knife attacked passengers on a busy bus in the northern German city of Luebeck on Friday before being overpowered and arrested, authorities said, and nine people were reportedly injured.

Authorities had no immediate information on the assailant's motive for the attack on a city bus in Luebeck, which is near the Baltic coast northeast of Hamburg.

Local newspaper Luebecker Nachrichten, which said the attacker appeared to be in his mid-30s, quoted a witness as saying: "One of the victims had just given up his place to an older woman, when the attacker stabbed him in the chest."

Firefighters attend to passengers injured during the attack. At least one person sustained serious injuries. (TNN/dpa/The Associated Press)

Earlier, police in Schleswig-Holstein, the state where Luebeck is located, tweeted there was a major police deployment underway. An area around a bus stop in the Luebeck neighbourhood of Kuecknitz was sealed off by police, spokesperson Dierk Duerbook told German newspaper Bild.

A spokesperson for prosecutors, Ulla Hingst, told n-tv television that the bus driver stopped the vehicle and let the passengers out after the attack. She said the weapon that the assailant apparently used was a knife, but that is still under investigation.

Hingst told Bild the attack took place at 1.47 p.m. local time.

Experts were also examining a backpack on the bus as a precaution. Hingst said it wasn't clear whether it belonged to the suspect, but said there had been reports of smoke coming out of the backpack. Police and prosecutors later said in a joint statement that investigators found a flammable substance in the backpack, but no explosives.

Suspect identified

They said that the suspect was identified as a 34-year-old German citizen who lives in Luebeck. His name wasn't released, in line with German privacy rules.



"There are no indications that the man was politically radicalized," the statement added. "There are also no indications at present of a terrorist background."

Passengers get onto a replacement bus after the attack, which took place on a busy bus in the Kuecknitz district of Luebeck. (Felix Koenig/EPA)

Schleswig-Holstein's state interior minister, Hans-Joachim Grote, said his information was that nine people were injured — six with the knife, two passengers who fell and the driver, who was punched.

Police said in a statement released at the same time that one of the injured was seriously hurt, but said the total number of injured wasn't initially clear.

The bus was travelling from Luebeck to the neighbouring seaside resort of Travemuende, where an annual regatta, the Travemuender Woche, was opening later Friday.

Grote said authorities believe security for the regatta is sufficient. </s> Image copyright AFP/Getty Images

A 50-year-old German man has been killed and six people injured in a knife attack in a Hamburg supermarket.

Police said the suspect was 26 years old and born in the United Arab Emirates. They said he acted alone and he was overpowered by passersby.

Mayor Olaf Scholz said the attack was motivated by "hate" but did not say it was a terror attack.

There are unconfirmed reports that the man shouted "Allahu akhbar", Arabic for "God is great" while attacking people.

Police said they were still seeking to confirm his current nationality. Mr Sholz said he was a failed asylum seeker.

The man attacked customers in the supermarket at random, ran outside and was chased by customers and by people outside the shop. They brought him to the ground before he was detained by plain-clothes police officers.

Mobile phone footage on German media that is purportedly of the attack's aftermath shows several people chasing a man and throwing chairs at him.

A 50-year-old woman and four men aged between 19 and 64 were stabbed, while a 35-year-old man was injured while helping overcome the suspect.

The attack happened in the Barmbek region in the north of the city in a branch of Edeka, Germany's largest supermarket chain.

Police say the man's weapon may have looked like a machete but they are, for now, assuming it was a kitchen knife.

One eyewitness made a gesture about 50cm (20 in) long when asked on German TV how big the knife was.

Asked whether this was a terror attack, a police official told the BBC: "We are at an early stage of the investigation... At the moment we can't rule anything out. We are investigating all avenues."

Speculation in German media said the attack may have been part of a robbery attempt but police said that that motive could not be confirmed.

One eyewitness, who ran from the scene into a nearby shop as the situation unfolded, told German broadcaster NTV that it seemed "hectic and confused, not like a properly planned attack". </s> BERLIN >> A man armed with a kitchen knife attacked passengers today on a crowded city bus in northern Germany before being overpowered and arrested, authorities said. Ten people were injured, three of them seriously.
A man attacks people on a bus in Lübeck, Germany, prompting an evacuation of the vehicle. Six people are hurt by a knife, one is punched and two fall down; three are critically wounded. Police find a smoldering non-explosive backpack at the scene. The Iranian-born suspect is arrested.