Man killed by German police in Munich after opening fire near Israeli consulate

German police are talking about “a terrorist attack linked to the Consulate General of the State of Israel”, instigated by an 18-year-old Austrian.

German police killed a man who opened fire on Thursday, September 5, near the Israeli Consulate General in Munich. German police spoke of a“a terrorist attack linked to the Consulate General of the State of Israel” in Munich, instigated by an 18-year-old Austrian.

The man was armed with an old-style rifle with a bayonet and fired several shots at police officers guarding sensitive buildings in Munich before the police opened fire on him, authorities said. The young man from Salzburg is “suspected of religious radicalization and interest in explosives”.

His act “could be able” be linked to the anniversary of the hostage-taking of Israeli athletes from that country during the 1972 Olympic Games in the Bavarian capital. The suspect was “already known to the police [autrichienne] since February 2023″after being accused in particular “of participation in a terrorist group”and was subject to a firearms ban, according to Austrian police. But the investigation was closed in April 2023.

The case comes amid a tense situation in Germany, which, like many countries around the world, has seen a resurgence of anti-Semitism since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, which triggered the war in Gaza. A record number of 5,164 anti-Semitic crimes were recorded in 2023, compared to 2,641 in 2022, according to German domestic intelligence.

“Anti-Semitism and Islamism have no place among us”reacted German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on his X account. Also on X, Israeli President Isaac Herzog “expressed his horror” on what he called“terrorist attack”German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, for her part, spoke of a “very serious act” and assured that “The protection of Jewish and Israeli institutions is a top priority”.