Good student, chess genius and about to carry out an attack for the Islamic State. in Vienna
At just 18 years old, an Austrian student of Egyptian origin was planning terrorist attacks while preparing for his A-levels.
Images released by the police
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According to Krone Zeitung, published on 23 April 2025, An 18-year-old has been arrested in Vienna accused of preparing attacks. jihadists in the name of the Islamic State. Although considered an exemplary student and passionate about chess, the boy is said to have planned Attacks on the Israeli embassy and a Shia religious centre. His arrest took place in a Turkish bookshop, in a joint operation between the Austrian secret services and an elite counter-terrorism unit.
When the perfect boy plans destruction
The young man, identified as a supporter of the Islamic State, operated online under the alias “Abu Layeth”. According to the authorities, cHe shared extremist content, accumulated knowledge about explosives and had manufactured a vest for terrorist purposes.. At his home, the officers They located a mock bomb constructed from toy parts and a weighted vest.. They also seized his mobile phone, which contained videos of radical preachers, instructions for making explosive devices and conversations with other radical individuals.
The images found speak for themselves: The boy posed with a homemade Islamic State flag, raising his finger in a sign of Tauhid. (symbol of jihadist monotheism) and appeared armed with a machete and a rifle in front of a mural of Mecca. All this material circulated through encrypted channels.
“It was all a joke,” he says.
Before the prosecutor, the boy has stated that it was all a set-up to provoke and get attention, and that he had no real intention of carrying out any attack. His lawyer, Michael Babic, defends his innocence: “My client did not have any real explosive material. He may be a chess genius, but he is by no means a bomb-maker.”
Despite these statements, the prosecution considers the evidence to be serious and that there is deep radicalisation. The young man could face prison sentences of more than ten years, depending on the final conclusions of the investigation.
The new face of jihadism in Europe: ever younger
The case of the young man from Vienna is not an isolated incident, but is part of a growing and alarming trend in Europe: The radicalisation of minors and adolescents through digital channels. According to recent data, in 2024 In Spain, 32 jihadists under the age of 25 were arrested.. In France, the situation is equally worrying, with 19 minors charged with terrorism offences in the same year.
This phenomenon shows that the Jihadism It has found adolescence to be fertile ground for sowing hatred, exploiting young people's vulnerability. Recruitment no longer takes place in clandestine mosques but in the solitude of bedrooms, in front of a screen.
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