New Zealand Knife Attack Speeds Overhaul of Counterterrorism Laws

WELLINGTON, New Zealand—A suspected Islamist extremist’s knife attack has prompted New Zealand authorities to accelerate an overhaul of counterterrorism legal guidelines, like by criminalizing the preparing of an attack for the very first time.

The stabbing of supermarket customers on Friday was the very first act of terrorism in New Zealand because a white supremacist murdered fifty one persons at two mosques in the southern metropolis of Christchurch in March 2019. 5 of the stabbing victims are hospitalized, three in crucial situation. The attacker, Ahamed Aathill Mohamed Samsudeen, a 32-12 months-aged Sri Lankan male who authorities claimed was inspired by Islamic State, was shot and killed by law enforcement.