Taylor Swift cancels three Eras Tour concert shows following suspected terror plot

Announcing the decision to cancel the shows yesterday (Wednesday 7th August), event organiser Barracuda Music said in an Instagram post: "Due to confirmation by government officials of a planned terrorist attack at the Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone's safety."

While Swift herself has not made a statement on the last-minute cancellation, her official website does seem to have announced the news by stating that: "All tickets will be automatically refunded within the next 10 business days."

Two men are said to have been arrested for the alleged terror plot, with Franz Ruf, Austria’s General Director for Public Security, stating that a 19-year-old Austrian citizen had been arrested on Wednesday morning in Ternitz.

Ruf also confirmed yesterday that a second arrest was carried out in Vienna but offered up no details on the suspect. He also said that chemical substances had been found and were being examined, with the investigation remaining ongoing.

Ruf stated: “According to the current status of the investigation, the two suspects became radicalised via the internet."

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According to Sky News, US officials said that Austrian law enforcement were still looking "for an additional individual, or individuals, who may have knowledge of the alleged plot".

The US officials also confirmed that the suspects had been under surveillance for a while and were already known to the Austrian authorities.

The alleged terror plans were detailed and were set to be carried out on the Swift concerts, which amass crowds of up to 65,000 people a day.

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to say that the Swift concert cancellations would be a "bitter disappointment for all fans" but said a "tragedy [had been] prevented".

While there's been no confirmed plans of rescheduling the Vienna tour dates, Swift is returning to the UK once again for another bunch of concerts later this month. Most recently, the star confirmed an all-female line-up of supporting acts.

Those artists joining her on the UK leg of the tour include RAYE, SOFIA ISELLA, Holly Humberstone and Suki Waterhouse.

Confirming the news of their support, Swift wrote on Instagram Stories: "Just wanted to tell you about something coming up that I’ve been so excited about: we’re adding 5 incredible artists to our 5 Wembley shows, going on right before Paramore.

"I asked them to play on this tour because I love their music and I think they’ll absolutely smash it in Wembley Stadium. Go check out their music if you haven’t already. Gonna be a fun 5 nights."

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