Teenage daughter suspected in stabbing of newly elected mayor in Germany

A newly elected German mayor who was found at home with several stab wounds was allegedly attacked by her teenage daughter, investigators said on Wednesday.

Iris Stalzer's injuries were initially said to be life-threatening following the incident on Tuesday in Herdecke in western Germany, where she was chosen as mayor on 28 September.

The authorities later confirmed that the 57-year-old's life was no longer in danger.

Emergency services were alerted shortly after midday on Tuesday by Stalzer's 17-year-old daughter, who reported that her mother had been seriously wounded outside the house in an attempted robbery.

Attending the scene, police found Stalzer sitting in a chair with multiple stab wounds, and determined that the attack appeared to have happened indoors.

Investigators at the house found two knives as well as clothing believed to have been used in the attack. They detained Stalzer's daughter and son, who is 15.

When questioned on Tuesday evening, Stalzer pointed to her daughter as the suspect, according to police investigator Jens Rautenberg.

There was no immediate information on the nature of the family conflict that preceded the stabbing. Rautenberg declined to comment on a possible motive at a news conference in the nearby city of Hagen, saying that it was still a matter for investigation.

Prosecutor Bernd Haldorn said he considered it a case of bodily harm, and that police and prosecutors intended to release the children and put them in the hands of the youth welfare office, which would decide on further measures while the investigation continued.

The attack on Stalzer — which followed violence against other local German lawmakers in recent years — drew swift condemnation from Chancellor Friedrich Merz and others. But investigators determined on Tuesday that there was no sign of a political motive.

The regional public broadcaster WDR said that police had been called to Stalzer's house on several occasions in the past due to reports of domestic violence.

The Spiegel news magazine said that an incident had been reported to police in summer this year involving Stalzer's daughter attacking her with a knife.

Stalzer is due to take office on 1 November. She is a member of the centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior party in Germany's conservative-led national government.

Herdecke is a town of about 23,000 people in western Germany's Ruhr region, located between Hagen and Dortmund.