Germany: Before Knife Attack 50 Institutions Refused to Accept 13-Year-Old Islamist

👉 Courtesy: 'Die Welt' Germany

Following the knife attack by a 13-year-old girl in a psychiatric hospital, a report shows that around 50 institutions had previously refused to admit the girl, who is classified as an Islamic threat.

Before a knife attack at a youth psychiatric hospital in North Rhine-Westphalia, around 50 institutions refused to admit a 13-year-old girl classified as dangerous. This is according to a report to the Children and Youth Committee of the State Parliament. According to the state government, the Paderborn district administrator ultimately turned to several ministers in his distress.

According to Family Minister Josefine Paul (Green Party), the girl had been "accommodated in various facilities of different support systems" since 2024. At the beginning of this year, the minor was classified as a threat by the Lower Saxony State Security Service. "The ministries involved have information on rapid online radicalization – beginning around the beginning of this year," Paul stated in her report to the committee.

District administrator wrote a letter to several ministers

As a result, the responsible youth welfare office has contacted over 50 facilities since April, "all of which were unsuccessful." The search for a facility for the 13-year-old was so difficult "that in mid-May, the district administrator of the Paderborn district wrote to Minister Paul, Minister Reul, Minister Laumann, and Minister Limbach, requesting support in this specific case."

With the support of the four ministries of family, interior, health, and justice, an experienced youth welfare provider was ultimately found "who agreed to cooperate in finding a solution for the girl." In the psychiatric hospital of the Regional Association of Westphalia-Lippe (LWL) in Paderborn, the girl is said to have stabbed a caregiver in the back on August 16.

Clinic fails with refusal to admit the child

A security guard specifically assigned to her had left the room shortly before, as reported by WDR and others. The 24-year-old nurse underwent emergency surgery and is now out of danger. According to the report to the state parliament, a homicide squad is investigating.

Now the LWL also refused to accept the 13-year-old. However, according to a court spokesperson, the Higher Regional Court in Hamm rejected the provider's appeal. The girl was therefore placed back in a psychiatric hospital.

The police had warned of such an act just a few days earlier. Another problem for the authorities is the girl's age. At 13, she is not yet criminally responsible. Therefore, she cannot be held criminally responsible for her attack on her caregiver. To protect her, the authorities are withholding details, citing the ongoing investigation and her age.

The 13-year-old had been in the focus of the authorities for months as a suspected Islamist threat.