A newly elected German mayor is fighting for her life after being stabbed outside her home by several men, local media reported.
Iris Stalzer was found, seriously injured, by her son in her apartment in Herdecke-Herrentisch on Tuesday, according to German outlet Bild.
The 57-year-old politician is understood to have been stabbed in multiple places on her stomach and back by a group of men on the street.
Friedrich Merz, the Chancellor of Germany, condemned the ‘heinous’ act.
She is receiving emergency treatment in hospital and is in critical condition, the newspaper said.
Stalzer was due to take office after being elected as the mayor of Herdecke, in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, only a week ago.
Local police have issued a major alert and a manhunt is ongoing for the suspects.
A rescue helicopter was photographed at the scene in Herdecke, accompanied by emergency services.
A homicide squad is expected to take over the investigation into the attack shortly.
The police are urgently appealing to the public for information.
It has not yet been determined whether there was a political motive behind the incident.
Stalzer, of Germany’s centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD), the junior party in the country’s conservative-led national government, was elected on September 28 as mayor of Herdecke.
After securing just over 52.2 percent of the vote, she celebrated her success in a post on Instagram, writing: ‘Above all, I would like to thank the citizens of Herdecke for this fantastic result and the trust you have placed in me as the new mayor.
‘I will begin my term in November – full of joy, enthusiasm, and respect for this task. Together with you, I want to shape, develop, and keep our city vibrant.’
The comments to the post are now filled with ‘get well soon’ messages in the wake of the news of the attack.
‘Disgusting act. A speedy recovery,’ one person wrote.
‘I pray for your health,’ another added.
The mayor is married with two teenage children and has lived in Herdecke, in the Ruhr region, for almost the entirety of her life.
She is a lawyer and a specialist in employment legislation.
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Merz wrote on social media that ‘we fear for the life of mayor-elect Iris Stalzer and hope for her full recovery’.
Police said only that there was a large operation under way in Herdecke.
