Syrian migrant arrested after knife attack on 4-year-old girl in German supermarket

A 34-year-old Syrian man with a Dutch passport was taken into custody on Wednesday after allegedly stabbing a 4-year-old girl inside a supermarket in the southern German city of Wangen im Allgäu, authorities said.

The disturbing incident occurred around 3 p.m. at a Norma grocery store on Zeppelinstrasse. According to eyewitness accounts provided to police, the suspect approached the young victim, who was shopping with her mother, and suddenly stabbed her with a knife. Investigators confirmed there was no prior connection between the man and the girl.

Emergency crews rushed to the scene and transported the critically injured child to a hospital, where she underwent emergency surgery. Her condition has since stabilized, officials stated

The suspect fled on foot but was swiftly apprehended nearby after a bystander intervened, disarming and restraining the attacker before alerting authorities to his location, news outlet Junge Freiheit reports.

"He took the knife away from the man and then chased him," a police spokeswoman told German tabloid Bild. "The witness called the police and told us where the man was. That's how my colleagues were able to arrest him."

The man, whose identity was not released, is scheduled for an arraignment on Thursday. The Ravensburg Criminal Police Office is leading the ongoing investigation into the seemingly unprovoked attack.

Authorities have not disclosed whether the suspect, reportedly a Syrian national, had any prior criminal record or revealed potential motives for the stabbing. His immigration status and length of stay in Germany also remain unclear.

"The fact that a child is suddenly attacked is something that shocks us all and leaves us incredibly affected and dismayed," Wangen Mayor Michael Lang said, expressing the community's anguish over the horrific assault.