Taylor Swift racked with fear after ‘terror plot’ ended Vienna shows

Taylor Swift says she is filled with fear and guilt over the cancellation of three concerts in Vienna following an alleged suicide attack plot.
“Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating. The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many had planned on coming,” the singer wrote on Instagram on Wednesday.
Police in Austria have arrested a 19-year-old man who allegedly confessed to wanting to cause a “bloodbath” at Swift’s shows.
The singer, 34, explained her near two-week silence in addressing the cancellation of the performances at Ernst Happel Stadium in August. “Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows.
“In cases like this one, ‘silence’ is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when it’s right to. My priority was finishing our European tour safely, and it is with great relief that I can say we did that.”
Authorities in Vienna, with help from American intelligence agencies, uncovered the alleged terror plot by sympathisers of Islamic State. Police have detained three suspects.
The main suspect, a 19-year-old Austrian with North Macedonian roots, allegedly confessed that he “intended to carry out an attack using explosives and knives”, according to Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, head of the Austrian domestic intelligence agency.
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Swift added: “I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives.” She said she was “heartened by the love and unity” she saw among her fans.
The singer also thanked British authorities and staff at Wembley Stadium for ensuring that fans were safe during her London shows — the last in the European leg of her marathon Eras tour.
Swift became the first solo artist in history to perform at Wembley eight times in a single tour, breaking the record previously held by Michael Jackson for his 1988 Bad tour at the original stadium.
The European leg of her billion-dollar tour began in Paris in May and has taken in Sweden, Portugal, Spain, Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy, Germany and Poland. In her playlist, Swift included hits from the albums 1989, Red, Midnights and her latest chart-topping 11th studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, as well as songs from her back catalogue.