Austria's attack: the closure of two mosques in the capital, and security flaws that cause the counter-terrorism official to be suspended from work

On Friday, the Austrian government ordered the closure of two mosques frequented by the attacker in Vienna, while the head of the anti-terror service in the capital was suspended from work after discovering a series of security flaws.

Integration Minister Susan Raab said in a press conference that the government's Religious Affairs Office "was informed by the Ministry of the Interior that the perpetrator of the Monday attack has visited two mosques in Vienna repeatedly since his release from prison."

At the same press conference, Interior Minister Karl Nihamer spoke of further failures in tracking down the attacker sympathetic to ISIS, who was known to the police and the judiciary.

It was revealed during the investigation that he had been in contact with persons subject to censorship by the anti-terror services in Vienna, but no steps were taken at the time, according to the minister, who denounced what he considered "clear and unacceptable errors."

In turn, Vienna Police Chief Gerhard Porstel announced Friday that the head of the anti-terror service in the capital, Eric Zweitler, had been suspended from work.

"He asked me to suspend him from work because he did not want to be an obstacle to the investigations," he said.

This information comes at a time when the government admitted that it had failed to determine the seriousness of the attacker, despite receiving a warning about it.

Kocetim Faizullah, who shot on Monday night in central Vienna and killed four people before being shot dead by police, tried to obtain ammunition in Slovakia in July.

Although intelligence services in neighboring Slovakia reported the matter, Vienna took no concrete steps.

For its part, the "Islamic Religious Authority in Austria", the largest organization representing Muslims and managing 360 mosques in this country, confirmed in a statement that it had closed places of worship, and its president, Umit Voral, said, "Freedom is a valuable asset in our country, we must protect it from violations, including When you leave our ranks. "

Meanwhile, the police arrested 16 people, some of them known to the judiciary, for "terrorist offenses." A spokeswoman for the Public Prosecution said that 6 of these suspects had been released because the suspicions related to them could not be proven.