A gathering organized by the right-wing populist group “Bürgerbewegung Pax Europa” (BPE) in Mannheim ended violently early Friday afternoon. An attacker armed with a knife stabbed several BPE activists. The assailant also critically injured a police officer before being shot by another officer.
According to SPIEGEL, authorities currently report a total of seven injured individuals. Several people suffered stab wounds to their legs and arms, and some also sustained injuries to their shoulders or faces.
Little is known about the attacker or their motive at this time. However, videos of the incident circulating online suggest that the attacker specifically targeted BPE and its activists.
BPE stated that one of the victims is the well-known anti-Islam activist Michael Stürzenberger, though this has not been confirmed by the police. Stürzenberger was scheduled to speak at the Mannheim marketplace on Friday, with his speech titled “Enlightenment Against Political Islam.”
Michael Stürzenberger, 59, has been one of Germany’s most prominent anti-Islam activists for years. He is a member of the BPE’s federal board and a contributor to the anti-Islamic platform “PI-News,” which is monitored by the Bavarian Office for the Protection of the Constitution. He is also active on YouTube, where his videos garnered over 723,000 views in 2022 according to the constitutional protection agency.
At previous rallies, Stürzenberger called for “reeducation camps” for Muslims modeled after those in China. He described the Quran as “the most dangerous book in the world” and compared it to Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf.” The Bavarian Office for the Protection of the Constitution notes that Stürzenberger categorizes nearly all Muslims under “political Islam.” He even proposed banning religious Muslim practices such as prayer and fasting.
About twenty years ago, Stürzenberger was the press spokesman for the Munich CSU. He left the party to avoid being expelled. In 2013, he became the federal chairman of the right-wing populist minor party “Die Freiheit,” which dissolved a few years later.
