Vienna attack: eight of the detainees had come into contact with justice

Eight of those arrested in the wake of the Vienna bombing had received convictions in the past, in particular for terrorist offenses, according to the Austrian government, while the investigation extends to Switzerland and another unidentified country.

See also: Islamist attack in Vienna: "Europe in the heart"

The author of the attack, which left four dead and 22 wounded Monday, November 2 in a busy district of Vienna, was killed by the police, hit by a bullet that punctured his lung.

Among the 16 people arrested, four had been convicted of acts of a terrorist nature, two others for violence and two others for attempted honor killings, detailed Thursday the Minister of the Interior, Karl Nehammer, at a conference press, in the aftermath of revelations about failures in Austrian services.

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The case has ramifications in Switzerland, where two men, 18 and 24, have been arrested.

They were also known to the courts for criminal proceedings linked to terrorism.

Investigators from another country are also mobilized, said the minister, who did not want to give the name of the country at this stage.

Read also: Vienna attack: the 2 Swiss arrested involved in procedures related to terrorism

According to German magazine Spiegel, the assailant, a 20-year-old Austro-Macedonian, had made contacts in Germany when he tried to reach Syria in 2018 to join the ranks of fighters from the Islamic State (IS) group.

The European police agency Europol has also dispatched two officers to Vienna.

At the scene of the shooting, in the heart of the capital, hundreds of Viennese gathered Thursday evening for a candlelight vigil, including young members of Jewish and Muslim organizations.

Earlier today, imams and rabbis took part in a silent march alongside the Archbishop of Vienna Christoph Schönborn in remembrance of the victims.

A 21-year-old was killed, along with a 24-year-old German student, who was enrolled at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna and worked as a waitress in her spare time.

Also deceased are a 39-year-old man and a 44-year-old woman.