A shocking knife attack at Hamburg's central train station on Friday evening has left at least 18 people injured, according to Germany's Bild newspaper, with four in critical condition and six others seriously hurt. While the official casualty figures remain unconfirmed, Hamburg police acknowledged that “several” people sustained life-threatening injuries.
Authorities have arrested a 39-year-old woman, who is believed to have acted alone. The motive behind the attack is still unclear, and police have indicated they are not currently treating it as politically motivated. Instead, early indications suggest the woman may have been in a state of mental distress, according to police spokesperson Florian Abbenseth.
The attack occurred shortly after 6 p.m. on a platform between tracks 13 and 14, in front of a waiting ICE high-speed train, just as passengers were boarding or getting off. The Hamburg Hauptbahnhof (main station) is a major transportation hub, making the attack particularly disruptive. In response, four tracks were temporarily closed, causing significant delays and rerouting of long-distance services across the region.
This violent episode follows another disturbing incident in February, where a car plowed into a crowd in Munich, injuring over 30 people. That attack occurred just before the Munich Security Conference, raising national security concerns, though it was also later attributed to an individual rather than a coordinated act.
Friday’s attack in Hamburg has reignited conversations in Germany around public safety, mental health, and security protocols at transit hubs. While no link to terrorism has been identified in either case, the randomness and violence of such attacks have unnerved both authorities and the public. Investigations are ongoing.
