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| Version 8 | Version 9 |
|---|---|
| Ansbach explosion: attacker was rejected Syrian asylum seeker, say German officials – latest | Ansbach explosion: attacker was rejected Syrian asylum seeker, say German officials – latest |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 6.22am BST | |
| 06:22 | |
| Kate Connolly | |
| Our Berlin correspondent, Kate Connolly, has been looking at the political fallout from the latest attack which has left Angela Merkel’s government facing a full-blown crisis: | |
| The German government has a crisis on its hands. Whilst right-wing populists tried to claim, even as it was still underway, that the Munich shooting was a consequence of Merkel’s refugee policy after initial suspicions it looked like an Islamist terror attack, now we have a major security incident involving someone we know arrived as an asylum seeker from Syria – albeit not in last summer and autumn’s large wave - according to Bavarian interior minister Joachim Herrmann. | |
| It will be necessary for Merkel’s government to respond as quickly as possible to reassure Germans that such events are not going to escalate. | |
| We’ve had the Würzburg axe and knife attack, perpetrated by a man said to be a 17-year-old Afghan who arrived in Germany 2 years ago (however, his identity is still very unclear. It has been suggested he might just have been in possession of the Afghan passport and might not be 17). | |
| On Sunday a Syrian man knifed to death a 45-year-old Polish woman who is believed to have been pregnant (though police say there is still no indication this was a politically-motivated attack). The Ansbach attack followed where had the man been allowed into the festival, could have been worse. All within the space of one week. | |
| The government has also made repeated claims over the past few years that there are many terror attacks that intelligence agencies have managed to thwart, including at a football match in Hannover, last November, which was evacuated due to an apparent threat. | |
| This chain of events and the threatened state Germany finds itself in, could come to dominate September 2017’s general election, in which Merkel is expected to stand for a fourth term. | |
| 5.54am BST | |
| 05:54 | |
| Reuters also has an anonymous quote from a US intelligence source saying that German investigators would focus on “what the bomber was doing before he left Syria, why he was denied asylum, and whether the attempted attack was personal or political”. | |
| 5.53am BST | |
| 05:53 | |
| The German asylum system and process will also come under scrutiny. | |
| The spate of violent incidents could “undermine” the ayslum system, the regional interior minister Joachim Herrmann said on Monday. | |
| Reuters quotes the minister: | |
| Unfortunately, this is a terrible new attack which will surely increase people’s anxiety. | |
| Hermann added he was worried “the right to asylum would be undermined” by the events of the past week. | |
| 5.40am BST | 5.40am BST |
| 05:40 | 05:40 |
| The series of violent incidents in Germany may force the chancellor, Angela Merkel, to once more break off from her summer holiday in the Alps. She took time out on Saturday to address the nation about the Munich shooting and will face pressure to do so again after the Ansbach explosion. | The series of violent incidents in Germany may force the chancellor, Angela Merkel, to once more break off from her summer holiday in the Alps. She took time out on Saturday to address the nation about the Munich shooting and will face pressure to do so again after the Ansbach explosion. |
| Merkel has ruled Germany since 2005 but her popularity dipped after she allowed hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Middle East and Africa to enter Germany in the summer of 2015. | Merkel has ruled Germany since 2005 but her popularity dipped after she allowed hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Middle East and Africa to enter Germany in the summer of 2015. |
| Her stance is thought to have cost her CDU party dearly at the regional elections in March when there were strong gains for the anti-immigration party Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). | Her stance is thought to have cost her CDU party dearly at the regional elections in March when there were strong gains for the anti-immigration party Alternative für Deutschland (AfD). |
| She faces a federal election next year but she has polled better in the weeks after the Brexit vote in the UK, the recent attacks across Europe and the failed coup in Turkey. Germany is home to 1.5 million Turks. | She faces a federal election next year but she has polled better in the weeks after the Brexit vote in the UK, the recent attacks across Europe and the failed coup in Turkey. Germany is home to 1.5 million Turks. |
| For more, here is an analysis written by our Berlin correspondent Kate Conolly in the wake of the Munich shooting: | For more, here is an analysis written by our Berlin correspondent Kate Conolly in the wake of the Munich shooting: |
| Related: In wake of Munich terror, Germans look to Merkel for reassurance | Related: In wake of Munich terror, Germans look to Merkel for reassurance |
| And here is a profile of Merkel written for the Observer in March: | And here is a profile of Merkel written for the Observer in March: |
| Related: Angela Merkel: enigmatic leader of a divided land | profile | Related: Angela Merkel: enigmatic leader of a divided land | profile |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 5.47am BST | at 5.47am BST |
| 5.05am BST | 5.05am BST |
| 05:05 | 05:05 |
| 'It was very disturbing' – witness | 'It was very disturbing' – witness |
| Sky News has spoken to a witness, Thomas Debinski, who described the “disturbing” scene as people in the small city came to realise a violent act had taken place. | Sky News has spoken to a witness, Thomas Debinski, who described the “disturbing” scene as people in the small city came to realise a violent act had taken place. |
| People were definitely panicking, the rumour we were hearing immediately was that there had been a gas explosion. | People were definitely panicking, the rumour we were hearing immediately was that there had been a gas explosion. |
| But then people came past and said it was a rucksack that had exploded. Someone blew themselves up. After what just happened in Munich it’s very disturbing to think what can happen so close to you in such a small town. | But then people came past and said it was a rucksack that had exploded. Someone blew themselves up. After what just happened in Munich it’s very disturbing to think what can happen so close to you in such a small town. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 5.08am BST | at 5.08am BST |
| 4.57am BST | 4.57am BST |
| 04:57 | 04:57 |
| 4.53am BST | 4.53am BST |
| 04:53 | 04:53 |
| And what we don't know ... | And what we don't know ... |
| 4.43am BST | 4.43am BST |
| 04:43 | 04:43 |
| What we know so far | What we know so far |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 5.02am BST | at 5.02am BST |
| 4.07am BST | 4.07am BST |
| 04:07 | 04:07 |
| 'Bomber was known to police' – minister | 'Bomber was known to police' – minister |
| More from the press conference, Janek reports: | More from the press conference, Janek reports: |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 4.32am BST | at 4.32am BST |
| 3.55am BST | 3.55am BST |
| 03:55 | 03:55 |
| Possibility of terror motive 'cannot be ruled out' – minister | Possibility of terror motive 'cannot be ruled out' – minister |
| Bavarian justice minister Joachim Herrmann said that because the dead man’s backpack contained pieces of metal, the possibility of an terrorist motivation for the incident could not be ruled out. | Bavarian justice minister Joachim Herrmann said that because the dead man’s backpack contained pieces of metal, the possibility of an terrorist motivation for the incident could not be ruled out. |
| However, a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office in Ansbach said the attacker’s motive was not clear. | However, a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office in Ansbach said the attacker’s motive was not clear. |
| “If there is an Islamist link or not is purely speculation at this point,” said the spokesman, Michael Schrotberger. | “If there is an Islamist link or not is purely speculation at this point,” said the spokesman, Michael Schrotberger. |
| 3.45am BST | 3.45am BST |
| 03:45 | 03:45 |
| Janek has sent another update about the press conference. | Janek has sent another update about the press conference. |
| 3.37am BST | 3.37am BST |
| 03:37 | 03:37 |
| According to Herrmann the suspect – who lived in Ansbach – had intended to disrupt the music festival, but failed to get into the event. | According to Herrmann the suspect – who lived in Ansbach – had intended to disrupt the music festival, but failed to get into the event. |
| The minister confirmed that some of the wounded people had suffered serious injury. Earlier reports said three people had been seriously injured but Herrmann did not specify the exact number. | The minister confirmed that some of the wounded people had suffered serious injury. Earlier reports said three people had been seriously injured but Herrmann did not specify the exact number. |
| He also said that there were 200 police officers taking part in the operation in Ansbach alongside 350 rescue workers and firefighters. | He also said that there were 200 police officers taking part in the operation in Ansbach alongside 350 rescue workers and firefighters. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 4.35am BST | at 4.35am BST |