2017 Turku attack
The 2017 Turku attack took place on 18 August 2017 at around 16:02–16:05 (UTC+3) when 10 people were stabbed in central Turku, Southwest Finland. Two women were killed in the attack and eight people sustained injuries.
| 2017 Turku attack | |
|---|---|
| Part of Islamic terrorism in Europe | |
A Finnish police officer kneeling beside Abderrahman Bouanane at 16:24 after he was detained | |
Turku Turku (Finland) | |
| Location | Between Market Square and Puutori, central Turku, Finland |
| Coordinates | 60°27′07″N 022°15′59″E |
| Date | 18 August 2017 16:02 – 16:05 (EET (UTC+3)) |
| Target | Civilian pedestrians |
Attack type | Stabbing |
| Weapons | 2 kitchen knives |
| Deaths | 2 |
| Injured | 8 |
| Motive | Radicalized lone wolf influenced by ISIS and Western Coalition airstrikes during the 2017 Battle of Raqqa |
| Convicted | Abderrahman Bouanane |
| Verdict |
|
Police were informed at 16:02. Three minutes later the attacker, Abderrahman Bouanane, a Moroccan rejected asylum seeker, had been detained. At the time of his arrest, Bouanane was using the name Abderrahman Mechkah, which was later discovered to be a false identity. In June 2018, Bouanane was found guilty of two counts of murder with terrorist intent and eight counts of attempted murder with terrorist intent. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. It was the first time anybody had been sentenced for a terrorist crime in Finland.
Bouanane reportedly identified as a soldier of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). He had been radicalised three months before the stabbing took place. During the investigation, he was discovered possessing ISIS propaganda material and a video of him reciting a manifesto.