After the xenophobic attack that left nine people dead in Hanau on Wednesday February 19, Emmanuel Macron insisted on expressing his ” full support To the German people and their leaders “In the face of this tragic attack”. “Our thoughts are with the victims and the grieving families. I stand with Chancellor (Angela) Merkel in this fight for our values and the protection of our democracies ”he first wrote in a Twitter post.
The “poison” of racism that plagues German society
Arriving at the European summit in Brussels, the French president reaffirmed his desire to be alongside the Germans “For the fight against hatred and racism which is led by the Chancellor with great force, as indeed by most of the German political forces”.
After the bombing of shisha bars, Angela Merkel canceled her trips, denouncing the “Poison” racism that plagues German society.
For the past few months, the country has been facing a rise of the far right both in the polls and in acts of violence. “A right-wing extremist assassinates Walter Lübcke. A right-wing extremist commits an anti-Semitic act in Halle. Right-wing extremist kills 9 in Hanau “, summed up Thursday in The cross Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, former Federal Minister for Justice. “What else needs to happen before this danger of terror is finally taken seriously? “, protested this close friend of the liberal FDP party.
In 2018, racist violence and hate attacks on the Internet increased by almost 20%, according to the German Interior Ministry: 7,701 xenophobic acts and 1,799 anti-Semites.
Hatred of strangers
The xenophobic motivations of the Hanau terrorist attacker, a 43-year-old German employee of a single bank, are no longer in doubt, according to the German federal prosecutor’s office. Authorities discovered a 24-page video and letter at her home that testified to a “Hatred of foreigners and non-whites”, according to Peter Neumann, a terrorism specialist at King’s College London. “He calls for the extermination of several countries in North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia” using “Terms explicitly eugenic and claiming that science proves that certain races are superior” he is developing on Twitter.
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