During a demonstration by Syrians on Sunday evening, a glass door to St. Stephen’s Cathedral was smashed. The man was arrested – the background is still unclear.
Several demonstrations brought Vienna’s city centre to a standstill on Sunday evening. Ukrainians marched around the Ring and Syrians demonstrated against the Assad regime on Stephansplatz square. During the demonstration there was also an attack on St. Stephen’s Cathedral. A man armed with two hammers smashed the new glass door at the Singertor.
The police, who were present in large numbers anyway, were able to arrest the man immediately as he left the cathedral vestibule. The police did not want to disclose the age or nationality when asked by the newspaper “Krone”.
Cathedral priest Toni Faber wants to find out in person on Monday whether there is further damage beyond the glass door. The “Krone” contacted the head of the cathedral shortly before his return flight abroad: “Of course we are horrified. The church master has already filed a complaint and together with the fire brigade a provisional solution could be found.”
Explosive: behind the glass door are valuable reliefs and sculptures that have just been restored. Until now, there was a heavy metal door in this place.
Glastüre zertrümmert – Hammer-Anschlag auf den Stephansdom | krone.at
Remember the Ghanian refugee who in 2014 smashed the statue of a saint in the entrance inside St. Stephen’s a few years ago….. after he had visited 3 other local churches and vandalized them inflicting a lot of damage at one church in particular in which the altar and a bunch of statues were smashed and torn down? Cardinal Schonbrun, the archbishop of Vienna did not really throw the book at him.”Mental illness, ja??”