Hate Speech and Disinformation Campaign Target a Syrian After Hamburg Knife Attack

Syrian teenager Muhammad al-Muhammad played a crucial role in stopping a knife attack in Hamburg, earning praise from police. Despite his bravery, he faces misinformation and a hate speech campaign aimed at discrediting him and casting doubt on his heroic action.

Syrian Teenager Praised for Stopping Knife Attack in Hamburg

A 19-year-old Syrian refugee in Germany earned praise after helping stop an assailant at Hamburg’s main railway station, where the attacker injured 18 people.

On May 23, police reported that they arrested a 39-year-old German woman at the scene and believed she was experiencing psychological distress. All 18 injured victims remain in stable condition, and authorities placed the woman in psychiatric care.

Attention turned to the Syrian teenager Muhammad al-Muhammad. He was waiting on the platform for a train home to Buchholz, about 25 km from Hamburg, after visiting a friend, when he noticed the woman holding a knife attacking people.

He watched as people began running away from the woman. “I decided to run in the other direction and stop the woman,” he told the German news magazine Der Spiegel.

As he approached, he saw another man, whom he identified as Chechen, kick the woman’s knee, knocking her to the ground. Muhammad then pinned her down, pressing her hands against her backpack to keep her from getting up.

Der Spiegel, which verified Muhammad’s identity, reported that the two men’s quick actions likely prevented further injuries.

Following the attack, Muhammad said that police questioned him before he eventually made his way home. “The police thanked me and bought me a cappuccino,” he said. “That made me very happy.”

Hamburg Police later commended the “rapid intervention” of two passersby who managed to stop the woman. 

Hate Speech and Misinformation Target Muhammad After He Halts Attack

Muhammad al-Muhammad’s heroic action quickly came under scrutiny as conflicting accounts spread across social media. While more outlets reported on his bravery in intervening, he unexpectedly became the center of a debate because he is an immigrant.

The German weekly Der Spiegel recently published an article on al-Muhammad, using an image he provided, showing him standing in front of Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate.

However, online users have since manipulated that image, altering backgrounds and pairing it with sarcastic and misleading remarks to spread false information.

An X user reposted a set of manipulated images of Muhammad and mocked him, saying, “Illegal entry, functional illiteracy, welfare recipient: Despite these minor flaws, the 19-year-old Syrian superhero Muhammad al-Muhammad continues to be successful in his mission against hate and knife violence.”

Social media users also exploited another real photo of Muhammad shared by the German news outlet Bild. Trolls doctored the background of the image and circulated false claims to cast doubt on Muhammad’s story and undermine his heroic action.

Another X user commented under a video where Muhammad explained how he pinned down the assailant, questioning the authenticity of his image. 

The user shared a Google Reverse Image Search result, claiming the photo dates back six years, implying the image and story are fabricated.

Misbar’s team found that Google Lens can provide inaccurate reverse search results; therefore, Muhammad’s story and image are authentic.

In addition, social media users belittled Muhammad’s heroic act, downplaying his role in stopping a knife attack that could have caused more injuries or deaths without intervention.

An X user even uploaded an image of a statue edited with Muhammad’s head and sarcastically asked, “When will the #MuhammadAlMuhammad statue #Hamburg be available?”

More social media users escalated the misinformation by outright denying Muhammad’s existence. 

An X user uploaded two images into an AI-image detection tool; the top image was an AI-generated picture, while the lower image was the real photo of Muhammad shared by reliable media outlets.

The user highlighted the tool’s result showing “100% AI” on the real image and wrote in the caption, “Muhammad al-Muhammad does not exist.”

In a video report, Muhammad recounted in Arabic what happened during the attack, describing how he and a Chechen man together pinned down the assailant after many people fled in panic following the injuries she caused.

The German tabloid “Exxtra24” reported on the incident, insinuating that Muhammad al-Muhammad might not be a real person, asking, “Why do current police reports not mention Muhammad al-Muhammad, even though police apparently treated him to ‘a cappuccino as a reward’?”

However, police confirmed to DW that one of the passersby mentioned in their official reports was Muhammad al-Muhammad.

Although there is no evidence linking the Hamburg knife attack to political motives, DW reported in May 2025 that Germany recorded a sharp rise in politically motivated crimes.

Natalie Pawlik, the government commissioner for anti-racism, condemned the “dramatic” increase in racist, antisemitic, and Islamophobic incidents across the country.

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