German authorities explain motives behind Halle city attack

Mohamed Abdelghaffar

Terrorism is no longer the preserve of Islamist organizations. The far-right is becoming equally dangerous. At the time Islamists claim to be defending the Islamic religion, far-right groups claim to be defending nationalism. They mainly target foreigners living in or visiting their countries.

Far-right groups have most recently hit outside a Jewish synagogue in the central German city of Halle.

The October 9 shootout outside the synagogue left two people dead, including a woman who happened to be in the area. The other victim was eating inside a restaurant in the same area.

German authorities also discovered an improvised explosive device that would have gone off after the shootout.

Accusations

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer accused the far-right of staging the attack.

He added in a statement on October 9 that investigators had proof of the presence of the far-right behind the attack.

Meanwhile, the German news agency, DPA, said the perpetrator of the attack is a German national.

It said the 27-year-old man carried out the attack against the background of radical motivations.

German police reduced the alert level in Halle city. It said on its website that it no longer categorizes the security situation in the city has “highly dangerous”.

Nevertheless, police asked the residents of the city to stay inside their homes.

Official reaction

The attack rocked the German society. German Chancellor Angela Merkel condoled with the families of the victims. German officials described the attack as “disgusting”.

Germany works hard to keep the lid on the dangers posed by the far-right in Germany. It said it would have no mercy in dealing with far-right groups.