2024-09-05 21:44:13
Shots were fired in Munich this morning and the shooter was shot dead by police. Politicians are shocked. But one party is also beginning to voice criticism.
Horrific news from Munich: This morning an 18-year-old gunman was killed by police near the Nazi Documentation Center. As Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU) announced at a press conference at midday, the gunman was a man from Austria. In the afternoon, the police announced that investigators believe it was a terrorist attack.
According to the Austrian news agency APA, the shooter had previously been reported to the Salzburg public prosecutor’s office because of a computer game on his cell phone that was close to Islamist terrorist ideology. However, the case for membership in the radical Islamic terrorist militia Islamic State (IS) was dropped, it was reported. You can read what is known so far about the perpetrator’s plans here.
“Munich held its breath for a moment today,” said Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder in the state capital. “Fortunately, it turned out well in the end.” The perpetrator’s background still needs to be determined. But there is a “terrible suspicion,” said Söder, pointing to a possible connection between the crime and the day commemorating the attack on the Israeli Olympic team in Munich on September 5, 1972. The protection of Jewish institutions is of central importance to him.
SPD parliamentary group vice-chair Dirk Wiese told t-online: “Once again it is clear how great the danger posed by Islamist terror is. The federal government’s security package will clearly counter extremism and terror. In addition, further measures will be discussed together with the CDU/CSU in the coming week.”
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) says that the incident in Munich was “a serious one”. They are in contact with the emergency services, but do not want to speculate. “The protection of Israeli facilities is our top priority,” Faeser said during a press conference in Berlin.
Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) also expressed clear criticism, particularly of Faeser. She told t-online: “What has happened to Germany’s internal security? The state is failing to protect its citizens.” Referring to Faeser, she added: “We have an interior minister who is hopelessly overwhelmed by her job.”
Video | This video is said to show the suspect in the act
Her party has declared internal security to be a priority issue, Wagenknecht continued. “We need a turning point against radical Islamism, uncontrolled migration and crime.”
The Israeli Consul General for Southern Germany, Talya Lador-Fresher, thanked the emergency services in Munich for their actions and cooperation. “This event shows how dangerous the rise of anti-Semitism is,” she said. “It is important that the general public raises its voice against it.” The Consulate General was closed at the time of the shooting to commemorate the attack at the Olympic Games in Munich 52 years ago.
The President of the Central Council of Jews, Josef Schuster, is shocked by the attack. “According to the information we have now, there again appears to be an Islamist background, as was the case in Solingen last week when three people were murdered by an attacker.” He added: “We are in a permanent state of tension and threat. We must not allow the enemies of an open society to destroy our freedom and our lives.”