UPDATE: GERMAN MAYOR-ELECT RECOVERING AFTER ATTACK IDENTIFIES DAUGHTER AS ASSAILANT. (PHOTO).

 German mayor-elect recovering after attack identifies daughter as assailant

A newly elected German mayor has identified her daughter as the suspected assailant in a knife attack that left her critically injured.

Iris Stalzer, 57, a member of the center-left Social Democratic Party and the mayor-elect of Herdecke, North-Rhine Westphalia, was stabbed Tuesday inside her home. She was found in her living room with multiple stab wounds and was airlifted to a hospital, where she was reportedly able to speak with investigators later that night.

Local officials said Stalzer named her 17-year-old adopted daughter as the suspected attacker. Earlier reports had suggested her 15-year-old son was involved, and he was also taken into custody. Authorities said the daughter placed the emergency call while accompanied by her brother. Two knives believed to be used in the attack were recovered, and investigators noted signs of a struggle in the basement.

Details about the motive remain unclear, though reports indicate a family dispute involving both children preceded the incident. Stalzer had won her mayoral runoff on September 28 with 52% of the vote, and her inauguration had been scheduled for November 4.

Following the attack, both children were placed in the care of German youth services. Stalzer’s party expressed shock at the incident, which comes amid broader concerns over political violence in Germany.