Eighteen people were injured in a knife attack at Hamburg’s main railway station on Friday, with several victims reportedly suffering life-threatening wounds, according to German police.
Authorities said a 39-year-old German woman was arrested at the scene. She is believed to have acted alone, though officials have yet to confirm a motive. The incident occurred on the platform between tracks 13 and 14, a busy area within the centrally located station. Hamburg is Germany’s second-largest city and the train station is a major transit hub for regional and long-distance routes.
Hamburg’s fire service reported that six individuals sustained life-threatening injuries, three were seriously hurt, and another three suffered minor injuries, according to the German news agency dpa.
Police, however, shared on social platform X that there were no “valid figures” yet but that “several” people had life-threatening injuries.
The attack reportedly took place just after 6 p.m. in front of a waiting train, regional broadcaster NDR said. A high-speed ICE train with its doors open was seen at the platform following the assault.
Rail operator Deutsche Bahn said it was “deeply shocked” by the incident. Four tracks at the station were closed Friday evening, and several long-distance services faced delays or were rerouted.
In Hamburg, carrying weapons—including knives—is prohibited at the station and on local public transport.
