On the evening of May 18, Alternative for Germany (AfD) politician Bent Lund was nearly stabbed to death by individuals said to belong to a migrant clan in the Schlewswig-Flensburg district of Germany.
On the evening of German Father’s Day, a group of perpetrators made up of two men and one woman, supposed members of a Schleswig “clan with a migration background,” tried to push Lund off the road with their Mercedes SUV while Lund was driving his motorcycle. When that failed, they ambushed him at the door to his house, where they pepper-sprayed Lund and threatened to kill him. One of the perpetrators held Lund while the other tried to stab him several times. Lund escaped four stab attempts but received a deep stab wound after the fifth blow, which penetrated eight centimeters into his body in the area of the shoulder blade and just missed his heart.
Lund was immediately taken by ambulance to the Helios Clinic in Schlewwig and given medical treatment.
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Despite the serious injury, Lund quickly left the clinic as he feared for the safety of his 16-year-old son, who was still alone inside their shared apartment. According to reports, his family has also received death threats.
The son is currently in a safe location and being watched by security services. However, according to a statement released by the AfD, the murder attempt on his father and the death threats directed against him have traumatized the 16-year-old, and he is currently undergoing psychological treatment.
According to Freilich Magazine, the main perpetrator, a 31-year-old Iraqi national, is currently in custody and facing charges under Section 1 of the Protection Against Violence Act. Although the local police initially described the attack as a “neighborhood dispute,” the criminal police and security services are now involved in the case. Public prosecutors did not want to comment on the motives due to the ongoing investigation.
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For weeks, Lund and people visiting his property had been verbally attacked and called “Nazis.” This also happened the evening before the crime took place when a large group of people blocked access to his apartment. The incident led to a scuffle in front of the house, in which Lund and another companion fought back against 10 individuals.
Later, when Lund visited a clinic, the same group taunted Lund and other individuals he was with. The hospital staff were forced to call the police.
The AfD party has suffered more attacks than any other party in Germany, including serious assaults and arson attacks. The country’s political establishment is also exploring options to ban the party outright, despite recent polling that showed the party is the second most popular party in the country.
Regarding the incident, one German news outlet writes: “An attempted assassination of a politician, even if it is a regional politician, is actually news of national importance. One remembers, for example, the case of the mayor of Altena, who was injured with a knife in 2018. The media response to a knife attack on politician Bent Lund in Schleswig on May 18, on the other hand, was very modest. No large, national medium has reported on it so far. The victim is a member of the AfD district council. According to the public prosecutor in Flensburg, the perpetrator is a 31-year-old Iraqi.”
