Hamburg

The Hamburg public prosecutor wants to indict the man who attacked a Jew in front of the synagogue. She does not see a political motive.

After the fact: State rabbi Shlomo Bistritzky in front of the barrier tape of the Hohe Weide synagogue Photo: Jonas Walzberg / dpa

HAMBURG taz | The Hamburg public prosecutor’s office has completed the investigation into the attack in front of the Hohe Weide synagogue in Hamburg. In October, a 29-year-old man attacked a 26-year-old student wearing a kippah in front of the synagogue and seriously injured the head. However, according to the public prosecutor’s office, there were no indications of an anti-Semitic motive in the course of the investigation. The Jewish community in Hamburg is irritated.

Nana Frombach, spokeswoman for the public prosecutor’s office, told the taz: “There is no evidence of a political motive.” Instead, the motive lies in the suspect’s mental illness.

The man is currently still in a mental health facility. He is said to have attacked the 26-year-old from behind with a spade at the entrance to the synagogue in the Eimsbüttel district, wearing a Bundeswehr camouflage suit. The attacked person first had to be admitted to the intensive care unit because of his head injury.

The security service of the Jewish community and the police stationed in front of the synagogue were able to arrest the attacker immediately after the crime. While in custody, he was transferred to a psychiatric facility.

The perpetrator should be incapable of guilt

“The investigations have shown that a sufficient suspicion of attempted murder and serious bodily harm has been confirmed,” says Frombach. No base motives were found, but the act was insidious. Even if a piece of paper with a painted swastika was found in the attacker’s pockets, a political motive for the act can be ruled out.

Although the act and the motive are related to the Jewish faith, this relationship primarily consists in the suspect’s illness. It was therefore not a question of a clearly political act. “Because of the state of health, we assume that the suspect is incapable of guilt,” says Frombach.

The act had caused horror nationwide because it was seen as another anti-Semitic attack. “How can that happen again, one year after Halle?” Asked the Hamburg regional rabbi Shlomo Bistritzky in the evening after the attack.

The act took place a few days before the anniversary of the attack on the synagogue in Halle an der Saale. And in the synagogue the congregation was celebrating the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles. Bistritzky was also on the way to the synagogue at the time of the crime.

Jewish community is surprised

The Hamburg police initially shared the assumption that there was a political motive: “Based on the current assessment of the overall circumstances, the act can be assumed to be an anti-Semitic attack.” Philipp Stricharz, chairman of the Jewish community in Hamburg, surprised the new one all the more Assessment. “It sounds very remote that it was not an anti-Semitic act,” he says.

The Jewish Forum for Democracy and Against Anti-Semitism (JFDA) is outraged: “Such acts do not happen out of nowhere,” says its spokesman Levi Salomon. Finally, a person in front of a synagogue who could also be recognized as a Jew because he was wearing his kippah was targeted. “To think that such an act is apolitical and not anti-Semitic is outrageous.” Even if someone is mentally ill, his act must be viewed politically.

According to the public prosecutor’s office, there was no evidence of other accomplices. According to information from the magazine The mirror The suspect reported for voluntary military service in 2016 and stayed with the Bundeswehr for at least the year. Therefore, he is said to have been in possession of the camouflage clothing that he wore during the attack.

The Hamburg district court will shortly have to decide whether it will allow the lawsuit. Because of the suspect’s state of illness, the trial could take place in camera.