Jewish student is beaten around the head with a shovel and seriously injured outside a German synagogue in anti-Semitic attack
- The 26-year-old was about to enter Hohe Weide synagogue in Hamburg
- He was bludgeoned over the head with a folding spade on Sunday night
- The attacker, a 29-year-old Kazakh man, was detained by synagogue guards
- After he was arrested, swastika on slip of paper found in pocket, DPA reported
A Jewish student has been beaten around the head with a shovel and seriously injured outside a German synagogue in an anti-Semitic attack.
The 26-year-old man was walking into Hohe Weide synagogue in Hamburg on Sunday when he was struck over the head with a folding spade.
The attacker, a 29-year-old Kazakh man wearing military fatigues, was overpowered by the synagogue’s security and police have taken him into custody on suspicion of attempted murder.
The suspect had a slip of paper with a swastika on it, DPA reported.
An Orthodox Jewish man and his son walk towards the cordoned-off area in front of the synagogue in Hamburg, Germany on Sunday night
Police patrol outside Hohe Weide synagogue in Hamburg on Sunday evening after the attack
Germany’s justice minister today called the attack an ‘horrible act of violence’ and condemned the hatred of Jews as a stain on Germany.
‘The hatred against Jews is a disgrace for our country,’ Christine Lambrecht said in a statement. ‘We have to further confront agitation against Jews and be there more for the victims of hatred and violence.’
Police said Sunday night that the Hamburg attacker was ‘extremely confused’ making his interrogation challenging.
A Hamburg rabbi said the community, which had come together Sunday to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, was ‘very, very shocked’ by the assault.
‘The question is: What have we not learned since Halle?’ Rabbi Shlomo Bistritzky said.
The assault comes amid heightened concern in Germany over rising anti-Semitism and far-right extremism.
The staircase where a Jewish man was attacked is marked with barricade tape in front of the Hamburg synagogue
‘This is not an isolated case – this is repugnant anti-Semitism and we must all stand up against it,’ German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas tweeted Sunday night.
The attack came nearly a year after a heavily armed white supremacist targeted a synagogue in the eastern German city of Halle on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism.
He killed a passer-by and a man at a nearby kebab stall after failing to force his way into the building.