palestinian pleads guilty to hamburg islamist knife attack
Last Updated : GMT 09:40:38
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
Last Updated : GMT 09:40:38
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle

Palestinian pleads guilty to Hamburg 'Islamist' knife attack

Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle

Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchroniclePalestinian pleads guilty to Hamburg 'Islamist' knife attack

A 26-year-old Palestinian man admitted Friday
Hamburg - Muslimchronicle

A 26-year-old Palestinian man admitted Friday to killing a man and wounding six others with a knife in a Hamburg supermarket, an attack that stoked fears of Islamist terrorism in Germany.

Ahmad Alhaw "declares that he takes responsibility for the very serious crimes he committed, and explicitly recognises his guilt regarding all the charges," the defendant's lawyer Christoph Burchard told judges in the high-security courtroom.

Alhaw took a 20-centimetre (eight-inch) knife from the shelves of a supermarket last July, using it to kill one and wound six in the assault. He was arrested after passers-by overpowered him.

Charging him with murder, as well as six counts of attempted murder and grievous bodily harm, prosecutors said he acted with a likely Islamist motive.

He told interrogators that the crime "had some connection with events on the Temple Mount" in Jerusalem, where Israeli authorities had recently imposed access controls for Muslim worshippers, prosecutor Yasemin Tuz told the court.

"The results of the investigation show that the accused sought out his victims indiscriminately, retaliating against people who in his view represent perpetrators of injustice targeting Muslims," prosecutors had earlier said.

"It was important to him to kill as many German nationals of the Christian faith as possible. He wanted his actions to be viewed in the context of an Islamist attack, and understood as a contribution to jihad worldwide," they added.

Investigators, however, did not find any evidence to suggest that Alhaw was a member of the Islamic State (IS) group.

Rather, the defendant -- a tall, slim, bearded figure who appeared in court wearing glasses and a blue turtleneck -- had from time to time demonstrated "suspect behaviour", "transforming" his life towards radical Islam before "again taking up a Western lifestyle," Tuz said.

- 'Fascinated' by the West -

Through an Arabic translator, Alhaw told the court he had sought asylum in Norway in 2009 after giving up dentistry studies in Egypt, hoping for a better life in Europe.

After his application was rejected, he moved around the EU, living in Sweden, Spain and finally Germany.

He was "fascinated" by the Western lifestyle and enjoyed drinking alcohol, with only "phases" of religiosity, Alhaw said.

But "he had the feeling that he was not welcome in these countries," he added.

Alhaw himself declined to discuss his suspected religious radicalisation or details of his crimes.

"He knows that he has committed very serious crimes and knows he will be sentenced for them," defender Burchard said.

- Sequence of attacks -

The killer risks life in prison, although Germany often grants parole after 15 years.

Hearings began after he was deemed psychologically fit for trial.

National news agency DPA said Alhaw had allegedly signed a statement during interrogation saying: "Yes, I am a terrorist."

The trial is expected to last until March 2, with the six people wounded in the assault invited to the hearings only from January 26.

The assault in the northern port city was the first Islamist attack in Germany since Tunisian Anis Amri drove a truck into crowds at a Berlin Christmas market in December 2016, killing 12 and injuring 48.

Amri was shot dead by police in Milan four days later, and the rampage was claimed by the Islamic State group.

Germany has been on high alert over the threat of a jihadist assault since that truck rampage.

Like Amri, Alhaw was to have been deported after his asylum application was rejected by authorities at the end of 2016, but the process was held up by a lack of identity documents.

The attacks have piled pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel over her decision to allow in more than a million asylum seekers since 2015.

Railing against the migrants, the Islamophobic party AfD won over 90 seats in September's general elections -- the best showing for a far-right party in Germany since the end of World War II.

themuslimchronicle
themuslimchronicle

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

palestinian pleads guilty to hamburg islamist knife attack palestinian pleads guilty to hamburg islamist knife attack

 



Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle

GMT 15:49 2017 Tuesday ,04 April

Europol, Georgia sign pact to combat terrorism

GMT 17:34 2017 Saturday ,19 August

India rail accident kills 10

GMT 07:44 2017 Saturday ,19 August

Firms flock to Syria fair with eye on reconstruction

GMT 18:11 2016 Saturday ,03 December

Congress and Trump agree to turn the heat up on Iran

GMT 13:12 2017 Tuesday ,05 December

Lebanon's PM Hariri withdraws his resignation

GMT 08:39 2017 Friday ,17 November

Baidu speeds up AI progress

GMT 03:33 2017 Tuesday ,21 February

Deadly blast strikes demonstration in Kabul

GMT 10:04 2011 Sunday ,11 September

Vauxhall/Opel to unveil 2-seat electric car at IAA

GMT 05:16 2016 Tuesday ,30 August

Fukushima Nuclear Plant Prepares for Typhoon

GMT 20:05 2011 Saturday ,27 August

Egyptair resumes Baghdad flights after 21 years

GMT 19:35 2011 Tuesday ,26 July

Ozil : Real \'more mature\' this season

GMT 05:41 2017 Thursday ,09 March

El Jaish Win Qatar Men's Basketball League

GMT 22:04 2011 Thursday ,08 September

Museum of the great syrian revolution monument

GMT 11:15 2015 Thursday ,01 October

Thuraya's CEO named Satellite Executive Of 2015

GMT 14:08 2016 Wednesday ,16 November

Scientists fear the worst under a Donald Trump presidency

GMT 10:28 2017 Wednesday ,12 April

New York $40mn attraction puts world in miniature

GMT 23:41 2017 Wednesday ,12 April

Easier visa regime to boost Oman tourism

GMT 17:48 2012 Monday ,09 January

Business trip: Dubai

GMT 01:34 2017 Tuesday ,11 April

Oman takes part in Arab Labour Conference in Egypt

GMT 15:20 2017 Monday ,05 June

Libya cuts all diplomatic ties with Qatar
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
Themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle
 
 Themuslimchronicle Facebook,themuslimchronicle facebook  Themuslimchronicle Twitter,themuslimchronicle twitter Themuslimchronicle Rss,themuslimchronicle rss  Themuslimchronicle Youtube,themuslimchronicle youtube  Themuslimchronicle Youtube,themuslimchronicle youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2023 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2023 ©

muslimchronicle muslimchronicle muslimchronicle muslimchronicle
themuslimchronicle themuslimchronicle themuslimchronicle
themuslimchronicle
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle, themuslimchronicle