Bloody knife attack in Vienna high school: student seriously injured!

Bloody knife attack in Vienna high school: student seriously injured!

On Tuesday morning, an incident in a high school in Vienna-Brigittenau caused great excitement: a 16-year-old student was stabbed in the school's toilet. The attack occurred around 10 a.m. and sent the entire school building into a frenzy. Fortunately, the girl only suffered superficial injuries to her upper body and, despite the shock, is in hospital but in stable condition. The police are still looking for the perpetrator and have already taken some measures. Two knives were seized in the area around the school - one near the crime scene and another outside the school. It is currently unclear whether one of these knives was the murder weapon. The State Criminal Police Office is leading the investigation, but there have been no arrests so far. Classes were temporarily interrupted during the extensive police operation, which also involved WEGA and service dogs. However, school operations were able to resume in the early afternoon.

Numerous worried parents, neighbors and students gathered in front of the high school. Many loudly expressed their criticism of the school's information policy. Some parents reported learning about the incident through Facebook groups. The Education Directorate explained that the release of information must be done in coordination with the police, but this could take time. In this context, the question remains: What leads to such an outbreak of violence among young people?

General violence in schools

The incident in Vienna-Brigittenau is not isolated. Experts are concerned about increasing brutality and violence among students. According to a report by Today For example, in Vienna there was a serious attack by a 13-year-old student on her classmate with a Stanley knife. This is just one of many incidents that have recently been documented in the Austrian school landscape. The number of suspensions at schools in Vienna has increased dramatically: 814 in the last school year - compared to just 303 in the 2018/2019 school year.

City Councilor for Education Christoph Wiederkehr (NEOS) describes this as “highly problematic” and attributes the increasing violence to the effects of crises and the pandemic. In Vienna, 97 social workers are now responsible for 242,000 students - an increase of 45 percent in the last three years. The city has also initiated a violence protection package to counteract the challenges. Wiederkehr suggests holding parents accountable for suspensions, similar to truancy. He emphasizes that measures such as time-out classes and remedial classes are intended to help integrate students back into normal lessons.

A problem for society as a whole

The increase in violence in schools is not just an issue in Austria. How Statista shows that almost every second teacher in Germany experiences violence among their students. A worrying problem that cannot be ignored in this country either. In 2022, over 12% of 15-year-old students reported bullying. Violence is a common problem, especially in socially disadvantaged schools. Almost 70% of teachers there complain about such a problem.

The fact that more and more children and young people are also suffering from cyberbullying increases concerns about safety in schools. While society is constantly interconnected, the challenges of the digital world cannot be underestimated. Over 80% of parents want anti-violence training in schools to counteract these problems. The call for more preventative measures and supportive programs is becoming louder.

Action must be taken quickly on the worrying development in the area of ​​school violence. It takes a concerted effort to guide children and young people in the right direction and create a safe learning environment. The incidents in Vienna are a wake-up call for parents, teachers and society as a whole.