"A Tragedy Was Prevented": Details Emerge About Thwarted Terror Plot at Taylor Swift's Vienna Shows
Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” concerts in Vienna were canceled because of what Austrian police say was a planned terrorist attack targeting the shows. @kellycobiella reports and Clint Watts, former counter-terrorism agent for the FBI, provides analysis on the security concerns. pic.twitter.com/ZxGzAWMuhI
- TODAY (@TODAYshow) August 8, 2024
Today, new disturbing details surrounding the foiled terrorist attack at Taylor Swift’s cancelled Vienna Eras Tour shows have emerged.
Investigators found bomb-making materials at one of the suspects homes. “He wanted to carry out an attack in the area outside the stadium, killing as many people as possible using the knives or even using the explosive devices he had made,” said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, the head of the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence, citing the 19-year-old’s confession.
Authorities said they also found Islamic State group and al-Qaida material at the home of the second suspect, who is 17. That suspect, who has so far refused to talk, was employed a few days ago by a company providing unspecified services at the venue, Ernst Happel Stadium, for the concerts.
Both teens were arrested Tuesday. Neither’s name was released in line with Austrian privacy rules. No other suspects are being sought, Karner, the interior minister, said. However, a 15-year-old, who had been in contact with both suspects, was also interrogated by police.
“The situation was serious, the situation is serious. But we can also say: A tragedy was prevented,” he said.
Swift herself has yet to make a public statement, but a source for The Mirror says, "Taylor has been devastated by this. She is devastated for the fans who have been waiting for years to see her. But the thought of what could have happened if the concerts had been targeted by a terror attack is horrifying, and she would never risk the safety of her fans.”
The source added, "The memory of what happened at Ariana Grande's concert in Manchester [in 2017] is still very vivid in everyone's minds. But she has told her team that she wants to try to return to Vienna as soon as possible in the future. She is very conscious of how disappointed her fans in Austria are."
As of today, Swift is still expected to perform at London’s Wembley stadium in five concerts between Aug. 15 and 20 to close the European leg of her record-setting Eras Tour.
Sources: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4