The main suspect arrested for plotting an ISIS-style “bloodbath” terror attack at a Taylor Swift concert in Austria is believed to have been radicalized online by a German hate preacher and Islamist influencer with a huge social media following.
The 19-year-old Austrian with North Macedonian roots, who allegedly confessed to his sinister plans following his Tuesday arrest, was supposedly influenced by Berlin-based preacher Abul Baraa, German outlet Bild reported, citing intelligence sources.
Baraa, whose real name is Ahmad Armih, is no stranger to German officials, according to the outlet.
He used to preach at the now-shuttered As-Sahaba mosque in Berlin’s Wedding district, which had reportedly been frequented by known German ISIS fighters over the years.
The mosque was raided by German cops back in 2018 over suspicions it was being used to transfer funds to an Islamist fighter in Syria in a bid to carry out “terrorist criminal acts,” prosecutors said at the time.
When the mosque eventually closed its doors in 2020 during the COVID pandemic, Baraa took his preaching to social media where his following among younger generations exploded.
Baraa, who now boasts tens of thousands of followers on Instagram and TikTok combined, regularly posts short preaching clips where he often rails against the West and unbelievers.
He also allegedly has ties to Salafism — an ultra-conservative branch of Islam that has been linked, in part, to jihadists.
German officials have apparently been concerned about the apparent “TikTok-ization of Salafism,” the outlet said.
Meanwhile, some Salafists — who are strict Sunni Muslims — include those wanting to invoke Sharia law and militants advocating violence to establish states they might regard as representing true Islam, Reuters reported.
It wasn’t immediately clear how much influence Baraa, who hasn’t been linked to the Swift plot, had over the 19-year-old suspect in the lead-up to his arrest.
The alleged mastermind, who was arrested alongside two other teens, had recently sworn an oath of allegiance to ISIS in an online video, security officials said.
Austrian officials handling the probe have said the online self-radicalization of the teen unfolded quickly.
In addition to swearing the pledge, the teen suspect also allegedly told people he had “something big” planned after quitting his job on July 25.
Those who knew him have also said he only recently started to show hints of being radicalized into committing acts of violence.
Several said that he had grown a long beard and had become more serious in the run-up to the foiled plot.
Investigators, meanwhile, said the teen had made a full confession after he was nabbed during a police operation at his home in Ternitz, a small town near the Hungarian border, late Tuesday.
He allegedly detailed wanting to carry out the suicide attack at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium this week using homemade explosives and knives in a bid to kill as many “Swiftie” fans as possible.
Investigators found bomb-making materials at the main suspect’s home and at least one explosive device was already in the process of being built, according to officials.
A 17-year-old Austrian citizen with Turkish and Croatian roots and an 18-year-old Iraqi national have also been arrested over the thwarted plot.
Like the alleged mastermind, the two younger suspects both have shown ties to ISIS.
Investigators are now scrutinizing the “networks” of the suspects as part of the probe, officials said.
A 15-year-old boy was interrogated Wednesday but was later released and is reportedly being treated as a witness, authorities said.
With Post wires
