Third arrest made over foiled terror plot on Taylor Swift concert in Vienna

A third teenager has ben arrested over an alleged terror plot at a Taylor Swift concern in Austria, as Chloe Keedy reports

A third teenager has been arrested in connection with a foiled plan to attack Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna, which have since been cancelled.

Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said an 18-year-old was taken into custody on Thursday evening in Vienna after allegedly being in contact with the main suspect.

The 19-year-old main suspect and a 17-year-old were arrested Tuesday, while a 15-year-old was also interrogated but was not arrested.

Police said on Thursday afternoon they were not looking into any additional suspects.

It comes as Taylor Swift concerts in London have been confirmed to go ahead as planned, as the Met Police say there is "nothing to indicate" events in Austria will impact the upcoming shows.

Austrian authorities said investigators found bomb-making materials at one of the suspects homes, and that one of the two confessed to planning to “kill as many people as possible outside the concert venue.”

Authorities also said the suspects appear to be inspired by al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.

Taylor Swift has five concerts at London's Wembley stadium between 15th and 20th August to finish her European leg of her record-breaking Eras Tour.

A spokesperson for the Met Police said: "There is nothing to indicate that the matters being investigated by the Austrian authorities will have an impact on upcoming events here in London.

"The Met works closely with venue security teams and other partners to ensure there are appropriate security and policing plans in place.

"As always, we will continue to keep any new information under careful review," the spokesperson said.

Speaking to Sky News, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said that while he understood Vienna’s reasons for canceling, “we’re going to carry on.”

Khan said the capital’s authorities were prepared for shows following lessons learned from a 2017 attack at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester that killed 22 people.

On Thursday night, hundreds of Swifties gathered in the Austrian capital to sing their favourite Taylor Swift songs.

Many fans were left disappointed after spending thousands on tickets, travel and accommodation in Vienna.

Up to 65,000 people had been expected at the Ernst Happel Stadium, and as many as 30,000 expected to gather outside.

In Austria, the main suspect confessed that he had started planning the attack in July, authorities said.

The 19-year-old had uploaded an oath of allegiance to the current leader of the Islamic State group on the internet just a few weeks ago.

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He was “clearly radicalised in the direction of the Islamic State and thinks it is right to kill infidels,” said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, head of the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence in Austria.

Haijawi-Pirchner added that the suspect "wanted to carry out an attack in the area outside the stadium, killing as many people as possible using the knives or even using the explosive devices he had made."

Authorities said they also found Islamic State group and al-Qaida material at the home of the second suspect, who is 17.

That suspect, who has so far refused to talk, was employed a few days ago by a company providing unspecified services at the venue for the concerts.

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