At least three persons of Albanian ethnicity have been reported to be involved in Vienna terrorist attack: the terrorist, one of the victims, and a police officer.
The terrorist was originally from North Macedonia, and had both Austrian and Macedonian citizenship, BBC reported.
Interior Minister of Austria Karl Nehammer said that the attacker had a previous conviction for terrorist association. The “Islamist terrorist” was jailed for 22 months after trying to join the Islamic State in Syria, the minister said. He was released last December.
Austrian journalist Florian Klenk was the first to report of the “Albanian roots” of the terrorist from North Macedonia.
Bardhyl Mahmuti, a former Albanian politician from North Macedonia, stated that the attacker and his first victim happen to be of the same ethnicity and nationality.
“Unfortunately, only few media reported that the first victim executed by this fundamentalist scumbag was Nexhip Vrenezi, also of Albanian origin from [North] Macedonia (from the village of Veleshta, Struga municipality),” Mahmuti wrote on Facebook.
Kosovo’s ambassador to Germany, Beqe Cufaj revealed that at least one of the Austrian police officers involved in the operation during the terrorist attack, his niece, was of Albanian ethnicity.
“Proud of my niece Doruntina Miroci to see her fighting alongside Austrian police the horrible terrorist attack in Vienna. Together we can stay strong!,” Cufaj wrote.
Four people were killed in the terrorist attack in Vienna on Monday evening. Several people were arrested in connection with the attack, while citizens have been advised to stay home.
