Knife Attacks

"The dramatic rise of knife attacks around the world shows that the problem these days isn’t with guns. It’s with people."

The knife is probably the most commonly used weapon in violent & non-military confrontations. It is common in every home, office & shop. Due to its availability & ease to purchase, the knife is used in crimes of passion, criminal acts & terrorist attacks. Like the vehicle ramming attacks that increased in the past 10 years, stabbing attacks are prevalent because attackers can easily obtain knives & other stabbing instruments.

Factors that makes knives a weapon of choice for many is the ease to carry & hide it, limited punishment for carrying compared to other weapons & ease of use (basically no real training necessary in order to be able to operate it or use it against someone, especially if the attacker is ready to die in the process).

In October 2016, the Islamic State’s online propaganda & recruitment magazine, Rumiyah, told its followers that holy warriors down through Muslim history have “struck the necks of the kuffar with swords, severing limbs & piercing the fleshy meat of those who opposed Islam.” The magazine advised its readers that knives are easy to obtain, easy to hide, deadly & that they make good weapons in places where Muslims might be regarded with suspicion.

This reality becomes particularly problematic when it is coupled with an increase in lone wolf terror attacks. There is now a prevalence of attacks in which individuals often deploying everyday items such as a vehicle or a kitchen knife, inflicts injury & death. Such attacks are difficult, if not impossible to prevent but, thankfully, frequently involve fewer casualties than attack carried out with guns & semi-automatic weapons as in the US.

United Kingdom

In 2016, a little over 21,000 knife crimes were reported in London. Unlike guns, which are strictly controlled in the UK, Canada, Germany, China, India, France, Italy, Spain & Australia, knives are easily accessible to almost everyone & can be used to slice fruit or stab a partner in a domestic disturbance. Strict gun-control laws in the UK & the difficulty of acquiring automatic weapons even on the black market, decreases the likelihood of mass-casualty shooting attacks. Since strict laws make guns hard to obtain, knives have become the weapon of choice for members of London gangs, who fight over territory & are prepared to kill over trivial slights. As stabbings become more frequent, more young people feel compelled to carry knives for their own protection, fueling a cycle of violence. Knife injuries have grown worse in the past 2 years, with victims receiving multiple stab wounds in hard-to-treat areas, indicating a clear intent to kill.

There were 43,516 knife crime offences in the 12 months ending March 2019, which is an 80% increase from the low point in the year ending March 2014, when there were 23,945 offences. Out of the 44 police forces in the UK, 43 recorded a rise in knife crime since 2011.

Potential future terrorist attacks in London & the UK are most likely to follow a similar low-capability/high-impact pattern, with less likelihood of more complex & drawn out attacks being conducted by organised groups of multiple attackers.

(Knife wounds)

Stabbing is the most common way of murdering someone in the UK. Around 30% of homicides are committed with a knife or other sharp instrument. Stabbing is so lethal because quite a shallow penetration of the body can quickly prove fatal. In a study to develop standards of stab-resistant body armour, tomography was used to show that, depending on the area stabbed, just 20mm of knife penetration gave a 41% chance of puncturing the lungs, over a 60% chance of liver or femoral artery rupture, & even a 6% chance of heart penetration.

(More knife wounds)

The force needed to penetrate skin with sharp knives is relatively low. Once the skin has been penetrated, the force required to enter muscle & underlying fat is even lower. Force increases to the point where the skin is penetrated, then rapidly falls off as the knife penetrates fat & muscle. While some force is still required to drive the knife further into the body, the person with the knife can get the impression that it ‘falls’ into the body after breaching the skin – which is why knife wounds often penetrate to considerable depths.

(Knife stabbing wound)

There is a difference between venous bleeding & arterial bleeding. Venous blood tends to flow more slowly than arterial, which often spurts. A victim can quickly die from a cut artery; therefore, arterial bleeding requires immediate attention. The rapid loss of blood adds an additional degree of pressure to being cut.

(Knife slashing wound)

In reality, you will rarely see a knife-wielding attacker coming. Knives are very easy to conceal & some are even made of non-metallic materials (like reinforced plastic, ceramic, fiberglass or titanium) so as not to set off metal detectors.

Australia

There are fears stabbings are becoming Australia's 'gun issues' after a spate of stabbings.

In Adelaide, 2 men suffered stab wounds after being set upon by a gang of up to 5 men in the centre of Adelaide last month. One of the victims managed to call Triple Zero before collapsing on the footpath. The 2 men were found on Pirie Street - one with stab wounds to his stomach, the other to his hand.

In Sydney, A woman is in a critical condition after she was stabbed multiple times in Sydney's inner-west in September 2019. Emergency services were called to a unit on Arthur Street in Marrickville at about 3am following reports a woman was seriously injured. The woman, aged in her 30s, was rushed to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in critical condition.

In Melbourne, emergency services were called to Lorne Street, in the northern suburb of Lalor last month after reports that 3 injured men, all believed to be aged in their 20s, were on the street. Officers found that 2 of the men had stab wounds to the stomach while the 3rd had a wound to his leg. All 3 were taken to hospital in serious condition.

France

In February 2015, a knife-wielding man attacks 3 soldiers guarding a Jewish community centre in Nice. The 30-year-old assailant, Moussa Coulibaly, is arrested.

In June 2016, Larossi Abballa, 25, uses a knife to kill a police officer & his partner at their home in Magnanville, west of Paris, in front of their young son. Abballa is then killed by a police SWAT team.

In July 2016, 2 teenagers (Abdel Malik Petitjean & Adel Kermiche), slit the throat of an 85-year old priest in front of 5 worshippers at his church in the western town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray. Both were killed by police. The murder is claimed by IS. The teenagers had sworn allegiance to the group in a video.

In October 2017, a 29-year-old Tunisian cries "Allah Akbar" before killing 2 young women with a knife at the main train station in Marseille. Ahmed Hanachi is shot dead by soldiers on patrol. His attack is claimed by IS.

In September 2018, French police detained a man who stabbed 7 people, injuring 4 seriously, in an attack on tourists & passers-by in Paris. The man, wielding a knife & iron bar, struck just before 23:00 (21:00 GMT) by a canal in Paris's 19th district.

Among the victims were 2 British tourists in their fifties who suffered serious stab wounds to the chest & stomach. The knifeman had initially stabbed 2 men & a woman near the MK2 cinema on the Quai de Loire, along the Ourcq canal.

In August 2019, an Afghan man seeking asylum was arrested after a 19-year-old was killed & 9 others wounded in a knife attack at a subway stop near Lyon, France, Saturday. 3 of the victims were in critical condition. A man, who was armed with a knife & a large meat fork, has been arrested after attempting to flee to the nearby metro station.

In September 2019, a man wielding a knife at a French movie theater stabbed 2 people after a fight broke out in the northern town of Rennes.

China

Knife attacks are common in China, where the carrying of firearms is strictly regulated. It is no surprise that those who want to hurt people found other ways to do it. Violent crime has been on the rise as the economy boomed in recent decades & the gap between the rich & poor widened rapidly. Studies have also described a rise in the prevalence of mental disorders, some of them linked to stress as the pace of life becomes faster & support systems wither.

In 2014, 33 people were killed & 130 more were injured when a group of 10 men & women coordinated a terror attack using knives at a train station in southwest China’s Yunnan Province.

In 2015, 50 workers at a Chinese coal mine were killed in a coordinated knife attack. Fifty more workers were injured.

In 2016, a facility for the disabled was attacked by a man with a knife. He killed 15 & injured 45 before surrendering himself to police.

In 2017, 18 people walking down a city street were injured when a man attacked them with a knife.

In 2017, 8 people were killed in a violent attack in China’s restive region of Xinjiang. 3 knife-wielding men attacked & stabbed multiple people in Pishan county. Police shot dead the attackers. 10 people were injured in the attack. Among them, 5 were certified dead after being sent to hospital.

In 2018, a knife-wielding man with a grudge killed 9 middle school children (7 girls & 2 boys) & injured at least 10 others as they returned home in northern China on Friday. A 28-year-old suspect surnamed Zhao from Zhaojiashan village in Mizhi County was arrested & confessed that he had been “bullied” when he attended the same Number 3 Middle School when he was a child.

In 2018, 13 people were seriously injured by a knife-wielding assailant at the Joy City Mall in Beijing. One woman died from her injuries.

At least 40 schoolchildren have been killed in stabbing massacres since 2010, but experts & the government are at odds over the cause. However, China is not unique in its problem with knives.

Japan

In Japan, where guns are equally difficult to obtain both legally & illegally, a killer used a knife in his rampage, stabbing 18 children & 1 parent, who was killed, along with an 11-year-old girl. The rest survived their injuries,

In 2001 a janitor wielding a kitchen knife killed 8 children at an Osaka school where he worked, while a man in Tokyo went on a random stabbing spree with a dagger in 2008, killing 4 people.

In May 2019, A man carrying a knife in each hand & screaming “I will kill you!” attacked a group of schoolgirls near a school bus parked at a bus stop just outside Tokyo, killing 2 & injuring at least 17 before killing himself. Most of the victims were students at a Catholic elementary school who were lined up at the bus stop near Noborito Park in the city of Kawasaki when the man began slashing them with knives. Witnesses described a hellish scene: children & adults falling to the ground, some with their shirts soaked with blood, dozens of children running & screaming for help, & school bags & books scattered on the ground.

In 2018, a Hong Kong policewoman shot a knife-wielding man inside the crowded Sham Shui Po subway station. Officers intercepted a "suspicious" man in the station but he then pulled a 6-inch knife from his backpack to threaten the officers. After giving him a warning, a policewoman shot him & he was sent to hospital with a stomach injury.

In 2008, in South Korea, a disgruntled man killed 8 people in a stabbing spree at his apartment complex.

In 2006, in Germany, a drunk 16-year old youth stabbed 41 people at the opening ceremony of the new Berlin central train station. 

It is important to recognize that an edged weapon attack follows the attack planning cycle. Obviously, the steps of the cycle for such an attack are entirely different from those of a kidnapping, shooting or VBIED.

Most edged weapons attacks are crimes of opportunity. This means the attacker will operate like an ambush predator. In an ambush, steps of the attack cycle such as target selection, planning & deployment are condensed. Nonetheless they are still present & there are points during the attack cycle where the attacker can be detected, avoided & even neutralised.

As in other types of attacks directed indiscriminately against random targets, the most obvious warning sign is the attacker's demeanor as he or she selects a target & prepares to launch the attack. Similar to suicide bombers or other assailants, attackers preparing to strike with an edged weapon will usually exhibit behavior that is out of place. While not all attackers exhibit the same characteristics, signs such as abnormally tense body posture, a fixed stare, a nervous attitude or abnormal perspiration could indicate ill intent. However, these cues must be considered alongside other contextual factors to determine whether an individual poses a threat.

Although knife attacks happen suddenly, it is usually not without some prior indications. Noticing these indicators can help you prevent the attack or gain time to respond.

(Situational awareness is a combination of observation & orientation - knowing what is going on around you.)

Make it a habit to stay focused on what is happening around you. This is key to spotting unusual demeanour & gathering of additional information required to place that demeanour into context. Individuals practising situational awareness can literally see trouble coming & take steps to avoid it. This ability is priceless in a situation involving an attacker armed with an edged weapon because that assailant must get within his arm's reach to hurt you.

However, situational awareness can be compromised by

• Inexperience: Personnel lacking training &/or experience to understand the meaning of the clues indicating an unforeseen change in the situation.
• Complacency: Lowering of vigilance on the assumption the situation is routine & predictable.
• Bravado: Blatantly ignoring signs of danger & commencing with high-risk activities in spite of the presence of information stay out of the situation as it has escalated beyond control.

Knives, daggers, box cutters & other edged weapons are an extension of an individual’s arm. Therefore, their range extends only as far as the attacker can reach, plus the length of the blade. Due to this limitation, an attacker must get within approximately 5 feet to strike you with a knife or box cutter & within perhaps 8 feet for longer blades. The best way to protect against an attack with an edged weapon is to stay out of the attacker's range.

Knife attacks are nothing like in the movies where the guy with the knife slashes or stabs a victim once, then leaves. In reality, knife-wielding attackers rarely slashes or stabs their victims only once. For maximum lethal effect, they will aim to make several cuts or stabs, or combinations of both.

Knife-wielders who have studied human anatomy will know which body parts to target. Slashing cuts to the inner thigh, the inside of the upper arm or armpit & the neck could intersect major arteries. Victims with leg wounds tend to bleed out faster. The abdominal area is another favourite, since it is an easy & large target, with a good chance of puncturing organs like the intestines, stomach, liver & spleen. Any stab wound to the chest threatens the aortic arch, the heart & lungs. The neck/throat are also preferred targets because by cutting the neck or throat, the victim can quickly die of blood &/or oxygen loss, depending on the location & severity of the cut.

Some penetrating trauma patients make it to the hospital in an extremely fragile state & surgeons have to adopt a strategy that originates from Navy warship emergency repairs called “damage control.” Essentially, this means stopping the blood loss to keep the patient alive & then coming back to them in 48 hours when they are in a better physiological state to tolerate repair work. And if a patient is “actively bleeding” transfusions alone will not help.

There is a clear distinction between the characteristics of wounds resulting from civilian stabbings & those incurred by acts of terror. Terrorists intend to injure as many random victims as possible & trauma units need to be prepared to cope with the simultaneous admission of multiple patients with penetrating & often life-threatening knife wounds. Edged weapon attacks can be deadly & terrifying. There are no signs that they will stop anytime soon. But with the proper situational awareness, mindset & training, edged weapon attacks can also be avoided.

I do not advocate trying to defend against an attacker with a knife because no matter how good you may be, you are going to get cut. I have seen the damage that knives & other edged weapons can cause. Because of this, I never underestimate an attacker armed with a knife or edged weapon & I will chose to kill him/her the fastest way possible.

Common misconceptions about knife attacks

Do not attempt to grapple with a knifer. Once on the ground, there is no guarantee that you are able to control his knife arm well enough to prevent him from carving you up. The myth of grappling is that it works everywhere. The fact that it proved successful in martial art Dojo has blinded many people to the fact that there are critical differences between fighting barehanded & fighting with weapons. In a barehanded fight, you can often prevent the enemy from being able to generate enough power to effectively strike you, but a knife doesn’t need power, it just needs to touch you. If you are attempting to control his arm while on the ground, he will wiggle free & repeatedly cut you until you can no longer continue to resist. Barehanded fighting can turn into an endurance marathon, where size, strength, physical shape & ability to endure punishment significantly influences the outcome of the fight, it is not applicable to a fight where knives or other edged weapons are used.

All the knifer has to do is cut you a few times to seriously reduce your ability to move & then wait while you bleed out. Now the really bad news, being pumped up on adrenaline is going to make that happen faster, the higher your heart rate, the faster you bleed out & lose strength. Now, all the knifer has to do is out wait for your strength to fail before finishing the job.

To hold anything in your hand, such as a baton, gun or shield, the muscles of your forearm contract & pull on the flexor tendons, which pass through your wrist & are attached to your fingers. If someone cuts or slashes the tendons or the muscles that power them, this connection is broken & your hand will no longer be able to close or to hold your baton, gun or anything else you might be holding.

This concept applies to all muscle groups, tendons and limbs. If someone cuts or slashes the key tissues responsible for you moving a limb, he would most likely disable or at least severely hinder your limb’s function. This is referred to as ‘biomechanical cutting’.

Stabs & cuts by people who are familiar with a knife’s properties & true potential are practically impossible to stop. A knifer with any idea of what he/she is doing, will overwhelm you with a hail of cuts. These will start at the nearest body part & end in a vital target. Within a second you may lose your fingers! Have severed tendons of your arms & be finished with a stab to your eye, or throat, or chest.

(Knife wounds in the neck)

Even though I have spent many decades practising & teaching martial arts & CQC/H2H, I would never chose to grapple with an adversary armed with a knife simply because there are too many variables. I have always advised my trainees to be aware of their surroundings & to quickly run away from a fight, where possible. In a fight, there are no rules, no referee, no fairness or unfairness - anything goes. As such, they must always look to ending the fight the fastest way possible, using whatever street furniture or weapon available. It is always better to be judged by 12, than to be carried by 6.

I have never underestimated the danger posed by a knife wielding attacker. I believe in shooting my attacker twice in the chest from a distance of 10-20 metres, followed by a closer shot to the head.

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Endro Sunarso is an expert in Security Management, Physical Security & Counter Terrorism. He is regularly consulted on matters pertaining to transportation security, off-shore security, critical infrastructure protection, security & threat assessments, & blast mitigation.

Endro has spent about 2 decades in Corporate Security (executive protection, crisis management, business continuity, due diligence, counter corporate espionage, etc). He also has more than a decade of experience in Security & Blast Consultancy work, initially in the Gulf Region & later in SE Asia.