Award-winning US singer and songwriter, Taylor Swift, has cancelled three planned concerts after two men were arrested for allegedly plotting terror attacks at the venues in Vienna.
The Grammy-winning superstar was scheduled to perform on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at Ernst Happel Stadium as part of her ‘Eras Tour’.
“Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour Vienna shows cancelled due to government officials confirmation of planned terrorist attack,” Barracuda Music, the promoter for Swift’s concerts in Austria, wrote on Instagram.
“With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety.”
Similarly, the singer’s official website listed the Vienna shows as cancelled and revealed that tickets will be refunded within the next 10 business days.
Two persons were apprehended on Wednesday on suspicion of planning attacks on large events in the area around the Austrian capital.
Franz Ruf, the public security director at Austria’s interior ministry, disclosed that a “targeted raid was carried out” on a “19-year-old perpetrator”.
He said chemical substances were also allegedly seized from the suspect’s home, adding that the man had “pledged an oath of allegiance to the Islamic State group”.
“According to the current status of the investigation, the two suspects became radicalised via the internet,” BBC quoted Ruf to have said.
In a 2019 interview with Elle magazine, Swift revealed that her biggest fear was violence at her concerts.
“I was completely terrified to go on tour this time because I didn’t know how we were going to keep 3 million fans safe over seven months,” she said while referring to both the Manchester Arena bombing and the Las Vegas mass shooting in 2017.
“There was a tremendous amount of planning, expense and effort into keeping my fans safe.”
