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Police arrest suspected accomplice in Berlin Holocaust Memorial stabbing

Authorities said a Syrian man was arrested for aiding the 2025 attack that wounded a Spanish tourist.

People walk and take photos among the snow-covered steles at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany, on Jan. 27, 2026, during commemorations of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Photo by Ralf Hirschberger/AFP via Getty Images.
People walk and take photos among the snow-covered steles at the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, Germany, on Jan. 27, 2026, during commemorations of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Photo by Ralf Hirschberger/AFP via Getty Images.

German police on Wednesday arrested a Syrian man suspected of aiding a 2025 stabbing attack that seriously wounded a Spanish tourist at Berlin’s Holocaust Memorial, according to the Associated Press.

Federal prosecutors identified the suspect as Khalaf A., who is accused of encouraging the attacker ahead of the Feb. 21 assault and acting as an accessory to attempted murder and bodily harm.

The attacker, also a Syrian national, Wassim Al M., was sentenced in March 2026 to 13 years in prison after being convicted of attempted murder and attempting to join a foreign terrorist organization. The court found he carried out the attack in the name of the Islamic State terrorist group and targeted the memorial because he believed Jews would be present, shouting “Allahu akbar,” or “God is great” after carrying out the stabbing.

The victim was stabbed in the throat at the site, which commemorates the 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust.

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