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A hostage-taking took place on a regional train in western Switzerland. The most important points at a glance.
The crime: On a train journey from Sainte-Croix to Yverdon-les-Bains, an armed man took 12 passengers and the train driver hostage on Thursday evening. The police previously spoke of 14 passengers. At around 6:30 p.m. he forced the train driver to leave the cab and go to the passengers. The train then came to a standstill in the small village of Essert-sous-Champvent with the doors locked, says Alain Gorka, the head of the Vaud regional police.
The perpetrator: The hostage taker has now been formally identified. It is a 32-year-old asylum seeker from Iran. He threatened the people on the train with an axe, a knife and a hammer, as the Vaud police have now specified. The police did not provide any information about the man’s demands. According to research by RTS television in western Switzerland, the man had arrived at the Boudry federal asylum center in the canton of Neuchâtel. But he was then assigned to the canton of Geneva. There he disappeared and reappeared several times. The risk of suicide was also an issue. According to the research, he was guilty of minor crimes such as theft or drunkenness.
The hostages: The 14 passengers and the train driver were partially tied up. The perpetrator also went for a walk on the train with some people, as the police explained. Some of the hostages filmed with their cell phones and also informed family members. Some of them came to Essert-sous-Champvent during the four-hour hostage-taking, said police spokesman Jean-Christophe Sauterel. The hostage-taking was also difficult for them to endure.
Legend:
Keystone/Gaetan Bally
Federal Councilor Beat Jans commented on the hostage-taking: “The population has the right to live in safety. I wish those affected and their families strength and courage to overcome these events,” he announced on the X platform. The State Secretariat for Migration will analyze this case and the possible consequences with the affected cantons, added the head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police. (sda)
The motif: The Vaud police do not assume an act of terrorism. According to initial investigations, his motives were due to his situation as an asylum seeker and his persistent desire to get in touch with an employee of an asylum seekers’ home. The police had to intervene several times because of his behavior.
The police operation: More than 60 officers surrounded the train that evening, the police said. Special forces and snipers were called in from Geneva. The police tried to negotiate with the hostage taker in Farsi and English, sometimes via WhatsApp – in vain.
Legend:
Fifteen people were held on this train for almost four hours.
Keystone/LAURENT GILLIERON
Access: The 15 people remained in the man’s control for almost four hours. Only when he left the hostages alone on the regional train around 10:15 p.m. did the police storm the train. According to police reports, she placed herself between the perpetrator and the hostages. Explosives were used to distract him.
The death of the hostage taker: The hostage taker then attacked the police forces. The officers therefore had to use the firearm to protect the victims. The hostage taker was killed. He died on the spot.
The victims: The 14 passengers and the train driver remained uninjured. “The hostages are fine, but they experienced an extremely stressful situation,” said Police Chief Gorka. They were taken to the regional gendarmerie center in Yverdon, where their families and relatives were already waiting for them. They receive psychological support and are questioned by the police.