FRANKFURT (Reuters) -German police mentioned on Saturday that they had been nonetheless looking for an unknown assailant hours after he killed three folks and wounded others in a stabbing assault at a competition within the western metropolis of Solingen.

Eight had been injured, 5 of them critically, the police mentioned in an announcement early on Saturday. That’s up from the 4 critical accidents the police reported earlier.

“Both victims and witnesses are currently being questioned. The police are currently searching for the perpetrator with a large team,” police mentioned.

The incident occurred round 9:40 p.m. (1940 GMT) on Friday, when the person attacked a number of folks with a knife, the police mentioned.

Deadly stabbings and shootings are comparatively unusual in Germany. The federal government desires to toughen guidelines on knives that may be carried in public by decreasing the utmost size allowed.

In June a 29-year-old policeman died after being stabbed in Mannheim throughout an assault on a right-wing demonstration. A stabbing assault on a prepare in 2021 injured a number of.

Friday’s assault occurred at a competition marking the 650th anniversary of Solingen in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, which borders the Netherlands.

Authorities cancelled the rest of the weekend occasion.

The state’s inside minister, Herbert Reul, visited the scene early on Saturday, telling reporters it was a focused assault on human life however declining to take a position on the motive.

A police spokesperson mentioned they had been unable to supply any particulars concerning the alleged perpetrator.

The assault occurred on the Fronhof, a market sq. the place dwell bands had been enjoying.