Pop sensation Taylor Swift’s three concerts in Vienna, Austria this week were canceled after the government confirmed a planned ISIS attack on the stadium. The Austrian authorities have warned that there could be other threats to Taylor Swift.
In an Instagram post, Barracuda, Taylor Swift’s Austrian show promoter informed that her sold-out gigs in Vienna on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday have been canceled due to a terror threat.
“With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety,” Barracuda said.
On Wednesday (7th August), two Islamists suspected of being involved in the thwarted ISIS attack were arrested by Austrian police. Franz Ruf, the director general for public security, stated that one of the two suspects in the case is an Austrian youth who declared allegiance to the Islamic state. Reportedly, the accused duo was radicalised online.
Police have launched an investigation into the case, conducting a search of one of the suspects’ homes in Ternitz, Lower Austria, and analyzing things found there. A bomb squad found materials and substances that could be used to build explosives and evacuated the home.
“During our investigations, we identified preparatory actions and noted that the 19-year-old suspect had a particular focus on the Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna. A clear threat has been averted,” Ruf said.
The officials said that while it is improbable that he would have been able to make a bomb before the concerts this week, however, they decided to arrest the suspects in case they may have found another way to attack Swift’s concerts.
This is not the first time Islamic terrorists have targeted a pop concert. Back in 2017, jihadist Salman Abedi killed 22 people and injured 200 as he exploded a homemade bomb at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England.
