An 18-year-old man was arrested in Vienna on April 9 after a dramatic police operation in the Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus district. The peaceful evening took a tense turn when Cobra units and officers from the State Protection and Extremism Investigation Division (LSE) arrived with an arrest van and stormed a Turkish bookstore. Eyewitnesses reported that three young men fled into the bookstore to escape the police. While the bookstore was not involved in the incident, the police confirmed that one suspect was taken into custody. The man, identified as Mohamed H., an Austrian citizen with Egyptian roots, is currently in pre-trial detention.
Mohamed H. had reportedly been under surveillance due to suspicious social media activity on platforms like Telegram and TikTok. He allegedly posted disturbing images, including a photo of a bomb vest with an ISIS logo, as well as pictures of himself with weapons. During a house search, authorities found a non-functional bomb vest in his room, but no other weapons were recovered. His laptop and mobile phone were seized for further investigation.
The authorities are investigating Mohamed H. on suspicion of being part of a terrorist organization. Reports suggest that he may have been planning attacks against the Israeli embassy and the Imam Ali Islamic Center in Vienna. His lawyer, Michael Babic, described him as a good student and denied any connection to ISIS. The investigation is ongoing, and Mohamed H. remains in detention. The presumption of innocence applies until further developments.
