A former Jehovah’s Witness member shot dead six people of the Christian group’s congregation in the German city of Hamburg, before turning the gun on himself, authorities said Friday, according to AFP
Eight other people were wounded, including four seriously, in Thursday evening’s attack, said Hamburg interior minister Andy Grote, calling it “the worst crime in our city’s recent history
Police identified the gunman as Philipp F., 35, a former member of the Christian group who left the community about 18 months ago “but apparently not on good terms
Investigators were still seeking a motive for the killings, but there was no indication of a terrorist motive in the attack, said a senior prosecutor
An anonymous tip-off had been sent to the weapons control authority in January this year, claiming that Philipp F. may have been suffering from an undiagnosed psychological illness and that he had a “particular anger against religious embers or against the Jehovah’s Witnesses and his former employer.
Raids following the shooting on the gunman’s apartment uncovered 15 magazines loaded with 15 bullets each and four further packs of ammunition with about 200 rounds
Police said the gunman had fired several shots at a car after noticing the driver maneuvering the vehicle as he was headed for the Kingdom Hall building. The woman escaped with light injuries and contacted police
The assailant shot at a window through which he entered the building and began firing on the congregation of around three dozen people present at the service with another 25 people participating on livestream
The first distress calls reached emergency services at 9:04 pm local time (2004 GMT) on Thursday, and police forced their way into the Jehovah’s Witnesses building minutes later
The police action interrupted the shooting, prompting the attacker to flee to the first floor of the building where he killed himself, said Grote.
“We can assume that (the rapid police action) saved many lives,” he added
Police had initially said the shooting left eight people dead, but that included the gunman and a seven-month-old fetus killed in the attack. The woman pregnant with the baby has survived and was counted among the wounded
– ‘Filmed the whole thing’ –
The Jehovah’s Witnesses in Germany association said it was “deeply saddened by the horrific attack on its members
Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned the “brutal act of violence” and said his thoughts were with the victims and their loved ones
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said investigators were “working flat-out to determine the background” to the attack
Neighbors recalled hearing multiple shots fired late Thursday
“Our son filmed the whole thing, he could see quite well from the house,” Bernd Miebach, a 66-year-old business owner, told AFP
“On the video you can see that someone broke a window, you can hear shots fired and see that someone broke in
Police have asked witnesses to come forward and upload any pictures or videos they may have to a special website
Another resident said police arrived on the scene within “four or five minutes
“We heard shots and we knew something big was happening,” said the woman, who gave only her first name Anetta
She said she knew the building was used by members of the Jehovah’s Witness community, describing them as “very peaceful, quiet
The three-storey building was still cordoned off on Friday with several officers standing outside
Hearses arrived at around midday, and at least four bodies were carried out from the building, an AFP reporter said
Germany has about 175,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses, including 3,800 in Hamburg. The US Christian movement, set up in the late 19th century and which preaches non-violence, is known for door-to-door evangelism
– Hit by attacks –
Germany has been rocked by several attacks in recent years, both by jihadists and far-right extremists
Among the deadliest committed by Islamist extremists was a truck rampage at a Berlin Christmas market in December 2016 that killed 12 people
Germany has also been hit by a string of far-right assaults, sparking accusations that the government was not doing enough to stamp out neo-Nazi violence
In February 2020, a far-right extremist shot dead 10 people and wounded five others in the central German city of Hanau
In 2019, two people were killed after a neo-Nazi tried to storm a synagogue in Halle on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur
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