Two knife attacks in Mannheim, Germany. The targets were political figures targeted by the Islamic community. The one who paid the price, however, was a policeman who intervened to stop the attacker. White weapons, therefore. Weapons that can be found everywhere. To hit anywhere. And mortally. If we look at recent terrorist attacks, we observe a worrying “evolution” in the methodologies used. Methodologies that have actually been present since the times of ISIS, the so-called Islamic State active in Syria and Iraq.
In the latest edition of one of their magazines, Rumiyah, an article appears explaining how to carry out mass attacks using vehicles and knives. It indicates the best means and knives to use, the points of impact to consider and other specific procedural aspects. For a mass attack, the use of kitchen knives is not recommended, as they are defined as perfect in the case of individual attacks (and this is because they must penetrate the tissues and are easily available). A more demanding knife, on the other hand, can be bought without problems but requires a non-trivial cost and leads to quick traceability.
As Alberto Gallazzi, – security consultant, both civil and military, in Italy and abroad, explains – “knives and vehicles are tools for everyday use and can be used by everyone because they do not require much training. People think that to use a knife you need to have who knows what training, when in fact causing damage with them is easy: just attack the eyes, aim for the throat and exposed body parts. Attacking the heart or trying to ‘cut’ is more complicated because a lot depends on the climate: when it is hot it is easy to penetrate the fabric of a t-shirt but when it is cold and you are covered the cuts, the famous slashes, are not so effective : you must have a knife of a certain type, as well as a certain ability to pin a person to the ground or against a wall (people, by instinct, escape and run). Penetrating is more effective, decisive and feasible, especially on exposed parts, but requires approaching, hence the link to concealing and approaching the prey by creating distractions.
Bringing death, according to the teachings of the Islamic State, is easy. Too easy. You don’t need to be a knife instructor to carry out an attack like that, just as you don’t need to be a Formula 1 driver to take the car and run over people. “Many times the finger is pointed at those who teach martial arts (who study the art of the knife), but it is wrong continues Gallazzi – I teach you a martial art, I offer you culture, information. How you use them: that’s the question. Otherwise we would have to remove gun sports from Olympic shooting, knives from restaurants, and so on. But we wouldn’t solve anything. Because, in the case of knives, you can always take a screwdriver and I can still pierce you or cause damage.”
Attacks increase. Not only by would-be terrorists, but also by baby gangs. What is happening demonstrates how easy it is to transform any object into a deadly object. “We can change the approach to security, suggests Gallazzi – It is not possible to remove weapons and a terrorist would kill even with his bare hands. Recognizing how people hide these weapons and observing suspicious attitudes: this is crucial. I did a workshop a few weeks ago and I called it The Joker (illusionist). The journey that day wasn’t to teach you how to use a knife; was to inform you about how criminals today – not just terrorists – use methodologies in obtaining a weapon, in creating one, in concealing it on themselves (in their hands, even when they gesture at you while someone asks you for information). They’re so good at this thing that it’s hard to notice. People are not used to looking at their hands and picking up certain signals. An example? A jacket on an August day. Someone who walks around the bus stop or in the square with a jacket draped over his arm should make me pay maximum attention. If he went out in that dress on a scorching hot day it’s not normal. There are people who manage to hide the knife under the shoulder strap of a handbag or backpack and so on. We need to pay attention to this and pick up signals. I don’t want to make you a criminal, but be prepared for what’s around you. I want to give you the culture to understand what happens, to make you understand how criminals and terrorists attack. If I don’t turn away and get educated I’ll start to pay more attention.”
It’s true, it doesn’t take much to attack. And there is a lot of information on the dark web but, if I start to understand what the body’s weak targets are, I already understand how to attack. “People – Gallazzi continues sternly – should think less about the bullshit of self-defense techniques and learn more how to manage first aid. Those who are attacked with a knife often end up with wounds that bleed profusely. If we had a basic first aid system to intervene in certain situations (manage bleeding, such as applying pressure or using a tourniquet) we could save lives. This is more useful than knowing martial arts techniques that are then ineffective once the attack explodes. Awareness techniques on what to watch, on how a South American gang acts, on how a terrorist behaves, on how to hide a weapon: having mastery of these techniques is more effective than not taking martial arts courses. Which are fine but which in cases like this don’t save your life. I invite people to look at these criminal acts to understand that we are not in a golden world, that we cannot look the other way, and that if you look at them tomorrow maybe I’ll be careful too. Because there is a wave of hatred that is growing. You have to sense how vulnerable I am and how to read what the person next to me might do. In the end, instinct is what helps you predict or prevent certain situations, read behaviors and body language.
Before an attack there are always gestures that can and should be understood: there is a choke point. In these criminal attacks there is always something that determines for me when and how an attack is carried out. People need to be educated about this.”
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