Blood feud in Graz

Syrian clan dispute escalated over a girl

The Graz-Jakomini prison, where pre-trial detention was imposed

(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian)

A brutal blood feud among Syrians in Graz continues to spread: Now the third brother is already in custody. It is a case of attempted murder, intentional grievous bodily harm and serious coercion. And it all started because of a girl.

It is a truly bloody dispute between two extended Syrian families that has left people stunned: the situation has escalated because of a girl that one of the Syrians (25) apparently had his eye on. The Austrian girl had already chosen a young man from the other clan for herself. As a result, the 25-year-old's little brother was brutally beaten up by Syrian compatriots in Graz one day before Christmas as revenge.

Hostile families
But the hostile family was not going to take this lying down. Another brother (20) then rounded up his relatives from refugee homes in Vienna and Innsbruck and was out for revenge. What followed was a bloody campaign through the Styrian capital.

Shots were also fired in the park
The clans arranged to fight via messenger services, armed with iron bars, knives and alarm guns. In Oeverseepark, a Syrian man (16) suffered a stab wound to the buttocks, in Rösselmühlpark a knife was brutally rammed into the back of an 18-year-old, and a pistol is also said to have been fired there! Officers from the Criminal Investigation Department (Department 1) are investigating attempted murder, among other things.

But the feud was far from over: it continued in Ägydigasse and Annenstraße, where iron bars, wooden slats and a pistol were used in another case of grievous bodily harm and coercion (a cell phone was to be handed over in order to locate other opponents).

Suspect taken out of bed by EKO Cobra
Two brothers (17 and 20) and a 20-year-old "helper" have been in custody since the end of the previous year. They were arrested in Graz and Innsbruck. Last Sunday, the 25-year-old brother, with whom it all began and who is also alleged to have shot into the ground, was taken out of bed at his parents' home and arrested.

Cobra officers made an exciting discovery in his own apartment: instead of the 25-year-old, a Somali man was living there who was to be deported and had fled. To date, all those involved have denied it. Other Syrians, completely unknown to them, were responsible for all the incidents. A further six arrests are pending in Vienna and Innsbruck as part of the clan dispute. 

Family exerted pressure on victim
The 18-year-old Syrian who was the victim of the attempted murder in December was subsequently visited by an uncle and other relatives of the hostile extended family, who are said to have urged him to reconsider his statement ...