Authorities in the northern Italian city of Modena said that a man drove a car into pedestrians in the historic center on Saturday, killing four and injuring four more, some seriously, again on Saturday. The incident, described as shocking , happened near the city’s well known cathedral, in an area that is usually lively and noisy, Via Emilia. ‘The vehicle suddenly accelerated, the driver went into the crowd and crashed into a shop window,’ said witnesses. The collision reportedly threw several people into the air and emergency workers were immediately there, moving fast to aid the hurt. One woman was reportedly catastrophically injured, with Italian media saying that both of her legs were crushed in the attack.
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JUST IN: Car ramming attack suspect in Italy identified as Salim El Koudri.
🔺Several seriously injured, 1 woman lost both her legs.
🔺The 31-year-old Moroccan has Italian citizenship and stabbed 1 victim.Mayor Massimo Mezzetti: “Too soon to make assumptions.” pic.twitter.com/VOFtngSyGz
— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) May 16, 2026
After the car came to a halt, the suspect stepped out, and tried to slip away from the area with a knife. In the mess, he supposedly struck a passerby who was trying to stop him. As Per Italian media, the man, identified as Luca Signorelli, was helping one of the injured and when he looked up he saw the driver making a run. The suspect, who was nearby, is said to have stabbed him on the head and chest with the knife, but Signorelli, with help from other people around him, managed to keep him still until police arrived. Later, the authorities confirmed that the suspect was grabbed on site and taken into custody.
Who Is The Suspect?
Authorities kind of described the man as a Moroccan man in his 30s from Italy‘s Modena area. He was reportedly treated earlier at a mental health centre in 2022, for ‘schizoid disorders’, before seemingly dropping out of therapy, Modena prefect Fabrizia Triolo said in a press conference, and yes it was pretty matter of fact. The name of the suspect Salim El Koudri was said by Italian media to be an economics graduate who is unemployed , and who has no previous criminal record. Police are still trying to pin down a motive behind the violent incident.
Italian Prime Minister Speaks
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called the attack ‘extremely serious’ , while Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini weighed in on the case on X, referring to the suspect as a ‘second generation criminal.’ The whole incident has brought the debate back to life in Italy about public safety, immigration, and mental health matters. For now, people in Modena are still in shock after the violent episodes that happened on one of the busiest, and oldest streets in the city.
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