A Syrian man who was sentenced to life in prison after a German court found him guilty of carrying out a deadly terrorist attack at a street festival in the western city of Solingen has asked for a review of the verdict.
Issa al Hasan, 27, was handed the maximum sentence for murdering three people and injuring eight at the Solingen Festival of Diversity on August 23 last year. He was also found guilty of membership in the Islamic State terrorist militia, which had claimed responsibility for the attack.
One day after the verdict was handed down by the Dusseldorf Regional Court, al Hasan launched an appeal by asking that the case be reviewed for potential legal errors, the Dusseldorf court said.
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Once the grounds for the request have been submitted, the matter will be decided by the Federal Court of Justice, it said.
This procedure means al Hasan is not contesting the facts of the case, but for a review of the interpretation of relevant law.
Al Hasan handed himself in a day after the attack and had been on trial in nearby Dusseldorf since late May. He admitted to carrying out the stabbing on the first day of proceedings.
A woman holds a lit candle in memory of the victims of the terrorist attack during the memorial service at the memorial plaque in the Evangelical City Church. A Syrian man who was sentenced to life in prison after a German court found him guilty of carrying out a deadly terrorist attack at a street festival in the western city of Solingen has asked for a review of the verdict. Thomas Banneyer/dpa
Baerbel Bas (2-L), Federal Minister for Labor and Social Affairs, speaks to citizens at an election campaign event with the SPD candidate for the mayor election in Solingen, Josef Neumann (left) in front of the SPD constituency office in Solingen. Henning Kaiser/dpa