Wednesday, August 24, 2016

British woman, 21, killed in Australian backpackers' hostel attack by knifeman 'shouting Allahu Akbar'; Police: 'We don’t have a motive yet'

(The Telegraph) A British tourist killed at a hostel in Australia by a Frenchman yelling “Allahu akbar” has been named as Mia Ayliffe-Chung.

The 21-year-old studied psychology and childcare before travelling to Surfers Paradise, in the state of Queensland, and working as a nightclub waitress.

Police arrested a 29-year-old Frenchman and are investigating whether the “senseless” knife attack was motivated by Islamic extremism.

The man killed Ms Ayliffe-Chung and injured a 30-year-old Briton as well as a dog. [...]

According to witnesses, the killer yelled “Allah Akbar” – Arabic for “God is greater” – during the attack and after he was arrested.

“We don’t have a motive yet,” said superintendent Ray Rohweder.

“Police were confronted with a terrible scene when they arrived. There were up to 30 people who witnessed the incident.”

A local resident was also injured, but not seriously, and a dog that lived on the premises was killed.

More...