Islamic State Claims Responsibility for Ansbach Suicide Bombing

While German security officials reported the discovery of a video in which the perpetrator of the suicide bombing in Ansbach on Sunday night pledges allegiance to ISIS, the group has also claimed responsibility for the attack, calling the bomber "one of the soldiers of the Islamic State." On Monday afternoon, as German security and judicial officials were detailing their findings regarding the suicide bomber, ISIS accepted responsibility for the attack through its affiliated news network, Amaq, claiming that the bomber was "one of the soldiers of the Islamic State." This announcement came just minutes after news agencies reported that a senior security official in Bavaria stated that a mobile phone belonging to the bomber had been found, containing a video in Arabic in which the bomber expressed loyalty to ISIS. The 27-year-old attacker stated in the discovered video that he would carry out a "retaliatory" attack against Germany. Joachim Herrmann, the senior security official in Bavaria, emphasized that the discovery of this video strongly suggests the terrorist nature of the explosion. According to this security official, in addition to the mobile phone on which the video was recorded, materials usable for bomb-making were also found in the bomber's home. In the Ansbach explosion, which occurred late Sunday night near an outdoor concert, the 27-year-old suicide bomber, a Syrian refugee, was killed, and several others were injured. According to reports, the bomber initially intended to attend the concert but detonated himself in front of a bar after being denied entry due to lack of a ticket. Further details about the bomber indicate that he had received two deportation warnings to Bulgaria during his stay in Germany, with the first warning issued in December 2014. German officials stated that the bomber had received another deportation warning less than two weeks prior to the attack, as Bulgaria was the first country where he applied for asylum. Additionally, the mayor of Ansbach reported that he had attempted suicide twice. The Ansbach explosion is the fourth violent incident in the past week in southern Germany. On July 20, a 17-year-old Pakistani refugee, who identified himself as Afghan, attacked passengers on a train in Würzburg with a knife and axe, injuring four Hong Kong nationals and one German before being shot dead by police. Last Friday night, an 18-year-old German-Iranian teenager killed nine people, including seven teenagers, in a shooting incident in Munich before taking his own life. Just hours before the Ansbach explosion, a 21-year-old Syrian refugee was arrested after killing one person and injuring two others with a machete. The police identified the victim as a pregnant Polish woman.