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Security is Stepped Up around Christmas Celebrations in Germany and Austria over Attack Concerns

Police officers guard at the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, 24 December 2023. EPA/CHRISTOPHER NEUNDORF
Police officers guard at the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, 24 December 2023. EPA/CHRISTOPHER NEUNDORF
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Security is Stepped Up around Christmas Celebrations in Germany and Austria over Attack Concerns

Police officers guard at the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, 24 December 2023. EPA/CHRISTOPHER NEUNDORF
Police officers guard at the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, 24 December 2023. EPA/CHRISTOPHER NEUNDORF

Sightseeing visits were barred at Germany's landmark cathedral in Cologne and Christmas Eve worshippers faced security checks to get into midnight Mass there Sunday as police responded to indications of a potential attack.However a top security official urged people not to shy away from holiday celebrations out of fear, The Associated Press said.Churchgoers attended multiple services at the cathedral despite the ban on visits purely for sightseeing, a day after police descended on the cathedral and searched it with sniffer dogs. With several dozen officers on duty outside, Auxiliary Bishop Rolf Steinhaeuser greeted those attending what he said was “probably the most secure church service in all of Germany.”In Austria, police said they also were stepping up security around Vienna's churches and Christmas markets, apparently responding to the same intelligence about a potential threat. They did not give further information, but the dpa news agency reported without citing a source that the threat was from an extremist group.Police in Cologne said they were taking precautions over Christmas even though the information they had was for an attack on New Year's Eve.“Even if the reference was to New Year's Eve, there are a lot of people in the area around the cathedral, today is Christmas Eve midnight Mass, it is one of the most visited cathedrals, the main train station is nearby,” police spokesman Wolfgang Baldes said while standing in front of the cathedral.“There are a lot of people, and that's why we said that if there was an indication, we would do everything necessary to protect people,” Baldes added.Cathedral Provost Guido Assmann said in an interview on the Cologne Archdiocese website domradio.de that halting sightseeing visits did not represent a big change since such visits are normally not allowed during services anyway, and services were scheduled throughout the day Sunday.Cologne’s towering cathedral, whose twin spires rise 157 meters (515 feet) high, is a major tourist destination visited by some 6 million people a year. It is home to the Shrine of the Three Kings, a gold- and silver-decorated casket said to contain the relics of the three wise men described in the New Testament as paying homage to the newborn Jesus.Police and cathedral officials urged churchgoers planning to attend Mass on Sunday night to arrive early and not bring bags or purses.At the same time, Herbert Reul, interior minister for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, appealed to the public not to stay away.“Caution is advised," he said, but “we are not defenseless. Our agencies are using all available information to protect us as well as possible.”“My appeal is, go to church, celebrate Christmas. Fear is the currency of terrorists. We should not make it more valuable,” Reul said.The European Union’s home affairs commissioner, Ylva Johansson, warned Dec. 5 that Europe faces a “huge risk of terrorist attacks” over the Christmas holidays due to fallout from the war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

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Public Mourns 35 Killed in Attack at Sports Complex in Southern Chinese City

A man offers flowers outside the "Zhuhai People's Fitness Plaza" where a man rammed his car into people exercising at the sports center, in Zhuhai in southern China's Guangdong province on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (AP)
A man offers flowers outside the "Zhuhai People's Fitness Plaza" where a man rammed his car into people exercising at the sports center, in Zhuhai in southern China's Guangdong province on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (AP)
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Public Mourns 35 Killed in Attack at Sports Complex in Southern Chinese City

A man offers flowers outside the "Zhuhai People's Fitness Plaza" where a man rammed his car into people exercising at the sports center, in Zhuhai in southern China's Guangdong province on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (AP)
A man offers flowers outside the "Zhuhai People's Fitness Plaza" where a man rammed his car into people exercising at the sports center, in Zhuhai in southern China's Guangdong province on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. (AP)

Members of the public paid their respects Wednesday to people killed by a driver who rammed into people exercising a sports complex in southern China, as the country mourned, but little information was available about the suspect or the victims in the attack.

The crash Monday night in Zhuhai killed 35 people and severely injured 43 others, and the driver was detained as he was trying to escape. Authorities said the 62-year-old man with the surname Fan was upset over his divorce settlement.

Members of the public had started bringing flowers in honor of the victims Tuesday night and continued into Wednesday.

There was a light police presence in the morning at the Zhuhai sports complex, which was closed until further notice, but the number of officers increased as the morning passed.

While police allowed people to leave bouquets of flowers in memory of the dead just outside the entrance of the sports complex, volunteers then quickly moved the flowers inside to the sports center.

“May there be no thugs in heaven,” said the message on one bouquet. “Good deeds will be rewarded and evil deeds will be punished.”

The attack occurred on the eve of the Zhuhai Airshow, an aviation exhibition sponsored by the People's Liberation Army that is held every two years.

China authorities often make extra efforts to tightly control information around major or sensitive events like the airshow. Censors also take extra care around major catastrophes or violence, often censoring eyewitness accounts. Clear information on the death and injury toll was not available for almost 24 hours after the attack.

Videos were quickly censored inside China, though they circulated outside the Great Firewall. They were posted by Teacher Li, an artist turned dissident who runs a X account with 1.7 million followers that posts crowdsourced videos about news in China.

Articles from Chinese media featuring interviews with survivors were quickly taken down Monday and Tuesday. The news that trended about the attack was largely based on official statements from authorities.

Police said their preliminary investigation found Fan was dissatisfied with the split of financial assets in his divorce. Beyond that description, further information was not available on his divorce or alleged motive.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for the “strict” punishment of the perpetrator according to law, in a statement Tuesday evening.

He also called on all local governments “to strengthen prevention and control of risks at the source, strictly prevent extreme cases from occurring, and to resolve conflicts and disputes in a timely manner,” according to the official Xinhua news agency.