For the second time in a week, there has been a stabbing attack in Sydney, Australia. The first definitely appears to be a case of a mentally disturbed man (not a Muslim). This second attack that occurred today took place in an Assyrian church and the target was the bishop, who was giving a sermon. The attacker is only described in the Australian media as a 15-year-old male. The bishop, Mar Mari Emmanuel, is reportedly a critic of Islam. He has survived the attack. Others also sustained non-life-threatening cuts.
However, Jihad Watch is posting reports that the attacker when subdued was speaking in Arabic and according to Jihad Watch's information, was saying, "Why is he swearing at my prophet? I wouldn't have come here if he didn't bring my religion into this". It is also reported that one of the witnesses who tackled the attacker stated that he kept repeating, "Allahu akhbar" during the attack.
A riot broke out outside the church as police battled people who were outraged by the attack.
Scouring the Australian newspapers, it is hard to read entire articles since they all seem to have subscriber blocks. However, this appears to be a jihadist incident. It will be interesting to follow the Australian media's reportage on this story.
*Update (4-15-24): Australian authorities have announced that this is a terrorist attack motivated by religious extremism. They are also repeating rumors that the attacker had the fingers on one hand severed by parishioners. It has only been confirmed at this point that the suspect suffered injuries to one hand.
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