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| Germany: mass shooting attempt that killed two was antisemitic attack, minister says | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Two people died and two more were severely injured in the eastern German city of Halle on Wednesday, after a gunman in a military-style outfit tried to force his way into a synagogue in an attempted mass shooting. | Two people died and two more were severely injured in the eastern German city of Halle on Wednesday, after a gunman in a military-style outfit tried to force his way into a synagogue in an attempted mass shooting. |
| Authorities in the city in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, home to 230,000 people, said they were dealing with a “rampage situation” after several shots were fired in the Paulus quarter north of the city centre at about midday. | |
| In a chilling echo of the Christchurch mosque shooting, the gunman recorded the attacks on a head-mounted camera and uploaded it online with an antisemitic and rightwing extremist rant. German media reported the killer was a 27-year-old German citizen. | In a chilling echo of the Christchurch mosque shooting, the gunman recorded the attacks on a head-mounted camera and uploaded it online with an antisemitic and rightwing extremist rant. German media reported the killer was a 27-year-old German citizen. |
| One woman was shot dead outside the synagogue near a Jewish cemetery and one man killed in a nearby kebab shop. | One woman was shot dead outside the synagogue near a Jewish cemetery and one man killed in a nearby kebab shop. |
| The German interior minister, Horst Seehofer, described it as an antisemitic attack. | The German interior minister, Horst Seehofer, described it as an antisemitic attack. |
| “Based on current information, we have to assume that it was at least an antisemitic attack,” he said. “According to the federal prosecutors’ office, there are enough indications that it was possibly a right-wing extremist motive. They have taken over the investigations.” | “Based on current information, we have to assume that it was at least an antisemitic attack,” he said. “According to the federal prosecutors’ office, there are enough indications that it was possibly a right-wing extremist motive. They have taken over the investigations.” |
| Security at synagogues around Germany was boosted in the wake of the attack. | Security at synagogues around Germany was boosted in the wake of the attack. |
| 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. | 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. |
| “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. | “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. |
| “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. | “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. |
| A resident interviewed by the news agency DPA said he had seen a man dressed as 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. | 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. | 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 shop’s 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. | Two people were taken to hospital with bullet wounds, police confirmed. |
| Reports on the exact number of attackers varied throughout the day, but police confirmed one arrest. | Reports on the exact number of attackers varied throughout the day, but police confirmed one arrest. |
| “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.” | “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. |
| 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.” |
| 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”. | 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. | 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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