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Germany shooting: 'Rampage situation' as two killed in city of Halle Germany shooting: two killed as gunmen target synagogue in Halle
(about 1 hour later)
Authorities in the eastern German city of Halle say they are dealing with a “rampage situation” after gunmen reportedly targeted a synagogue and a kebab shop in the city, killing two people. Two people died and two more were severely injured in the eastern German city of Halle on Wednesday, after gunmen in military-style outfits tried to force their way into a synagogue and then targeted a nearby kebab shop.
Several shots were fired in the Paulus quarter north of the city centre around midday, police said. The head of the the Jewish community in Halle, Max Privorotzki, told Spiegel magazine that gunmen in military gear had tried to force their way into a synagogue but were repelled by security personnel. Authorities in the city in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, home to some 230,000 inhabitants, said they were dealing with a “rampage situation” after several shots were fired in the Paulus quarter north of the city centre around midday.
The Jewish community has been celebrating Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism. There were 70 to 80 people in the synagogue at the time of the incident, Privorotzki said. In a chilling echo of the Christchurch mosque shooting, one of the gunmen recorded the attacks on a head-mounted camera and uploaded it online with an antisemitic and rightwing extremist rant.
One of the attackers had tried to open the door to the synagogue and then the gate to the cemetery by shooting at the locks. “We barricaded the doors from the inside and waited for the police”, Privorotzki added. Worship had continued after the attack, he said. One woman was shot dead outside the synagogue and one man killed in the kebab shop.
Witnesses also said the attackers had fired at a nearby kebab shop, reportedly killing a male customer inside. Two people were taken to hospital with bullet wounds, police confirmed. Security at synagogues around Germany was boosted in the wake of the attack. “We are investigating … all possible directions, including antisemitic and rightwing extremist motives,” a spokesperson for Germany’s public prosecutor general told the Guardian.
Germany’s public prosecutor general took charge of investigations but would not comment on a possible background behind the attack. “We are investigating into all possible directions, including antisemitic and rightwing extremist motives”, a spokesperson told the Guardian. Between 70 and 80 people had gathered in the synagogue in the area to celebrate Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism, when they heard the shots outside the building. Via a security camera, they could make out a man trying to enter the building by shooting at the locks.
Police later said one suspect had been arrested but urged people to remain vigilant. It did not give any details of the person arrested and said police were in the process of stabilising the situation. “The attacker repeatedly shot at the door and also threw several Molotov cocktails, firecrackers and grenades to force his way in,” the head of the the Jewish community in Halle, Max Privorotzki, told Der Spiegel magazine.
“Our forces have detained one person,” a tweet from the police said. “Please remain alert, however. We have deployed forces in and around Halle and are stabilising the situation until we have all the relevant information.” “But the door stayed shut, God protected us. The whole thing lasted perhaps five to 10 minutes,” Privorotzki added. Worship continued after the attack, he said.
According to Spiegel, the two attackers had separated after the initial assault, with one man arrested by police on the motorway after hijacking a taxi. A resident interviewed by the news agency dpa said he had seen a man dressed like a police officer take aim and shot a young woman with an automatic rifle outside the synagogue, and then thrown a hand grenade over a wall at the Jewish cemetery. The report could not be confirmed.
Reports in German media suggested the female victim was a passerby rather than a member of the Jewish community.
Shots were later fired at a kebab shop on nearby Ludwig-Wucherer-Strasse, killing one male customer inside. Witness Konrad Rösler, 28, told German media a man wearing a military outfit and helmet had walked up to the Kiez Döner take-away restaurant and thrown a stun grenade at the building that bounced off the door frame. The man had then fired a shot inside the kebab shop, where five or six people were present, the witness said.
One of the kebab shops’ employees told broadcaster NTV the attacker had been “calm, like a professional – he did it like I make kebabs”.
Two people were taken to hospital with bullet wounds, police confirmed.
Reports on the exact number of attackers varied throughout the day, but according to Der Spiegel the shooting rampage was carried out by two individuals, who separated after the initial assault, with one man arrested by police on the motorway after hijacking a taxi.
“Our forces have detained one person,” police tweeted at 12:44. “Please remain alert, however. We have deployed forces in and around Halle and are stabilising the situation until we have all the relevant information.”
A video, filmed on a mobile phone and broadcast by regional TV station MDR, showed a man in green military gear standing at the back of a parked car, firing a rifle.A video, filmed on a mobile phone and broadcast by regional TV station MDR, showed a man in green military gear standing at the back of a parked car, firing a rifle.
A resident interviewed by the news agency dpa said a man dressed like a police officer had taken aim and shot a young girl with an automatic rifle outside the synagogue, and then thrown a hand grenade over a wall at the Jewish cemetery. The report could not be confirmed. Newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung described the arrested man as a “white German citizen”, citing sources in the state government.
Another witness said a man wearing a military outfit and helmet had walked up to the Kiez Döner kebab shop on nearby Ludwig-Wucherer-Strasse and thrown a stun grenade at the building that bounced off the door frame. The man had then fired a shot inside the kebab shop, where five or six people were present, the witness said.
The central train station was closed while the area was under lockdown, the rail company Deutsche Bahn said.
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, told a news conference: “It is terrible news from Halle and I hope very much that the police will manage to catch the perpetrator or perpetrators as quickly as possible so that no other person will be in danger.”Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, told a news conference: “It is terrible news from Halle and I hope very much that the police will manage to catch the perpetrator or perpetrators as quickly as possible so that no other person will be in danger.”
Rainer Haseloff, the state premier of Saxony-Anhalt, said he was shocked by what he called a “cowardly assault on peaceful coexistence in our country”. Reiner Haseloff, the state premier of Saxony-Anhalt, said he was shocked by what he called a “cowardly assault on peaceful coexistence in our country”.
Germany’s national football team is planning to hold a minute’s silence before Wednesday night’s international friendly match against Argentina.
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