German prosecutors charged 26-year-old Issa Al H. with murder on Thursday in connection with the stabbing attack in Solingen in August, according to German media reports.
H., a Syrian national said to be a member of ISIS, has been charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and membership of a terrorist organization.
The attack took place in the Fronhof, a market square in the western German city where live bands were playing as part of a festival marking its 650th anniversary.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack but failed to provide evidence of a connection, the Associated Press reported. The terror group claimed the stabber targeted Christians “to avenge Muslims in Palestine and everywhere.”
H. reportedly recorded a video pledging his allegiance to IS and sent it to a contact moments before the stabbings.
The attack occurred at an outdoor festival in western Germany in August 2024. Three people were killed and 10 were wounded.
Revenge for the Israel-Hamas war
After allegedly carrying out the attack, H. was said by prosecutors to have gone on the run - igniting a day-long manhunt, according to DW News.
Prosecutors believe H. had been targeted non-believers and was driven by a radical Islamist ideology.
Investigations were launched following H.’s arrest as he was reportedly slated for deportation to Bulgaria in 2023.
REUTERS contributed to this report.