Mannheim knife attacker admits guilt, expresses remorse
A 26-year-old man on trial for the murder of a police officer and injury to five others on the market square of the German city of Mannheim in May last year on Tuesday admitted guilt and expressed remorse.
The Afghan man, identified under privacy law as Sulaiman A, said the war in the Gaza Strip had changed his life and was the motive for his attack on a rally called by the anti-Islam activist group Pax Europa (BPE). He is charged with murder and attempted murder.
Five rally participants and police officer Rouven Laur, 29, were injured in the May 31 attack. Laur died in hospital two days later. Another officer disabled the attacker with a gunshot.
The accused said he had spoken about killing unbelievers in Telegram chats with a cleric and collected information on the Islamic State terrorist group.
"I will say how I came to commit this terrible crime," Sulaiman A told the court, describing how he aimed to kill BPE leader Michael Stürzenberger. Stürzenberger was one of the people injured.
"My life changed with the start of this Gaza war," he said, revealing that he had viewed Telegram channels showing dead men, women and children. "I cried every day," he said.
The trial began in February and is scheduled to run until the end of October.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hamilton Spectator
2 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Protesters and immigration authorities face off for a second day in LA area after arrests
PARAMOUNT, Calif. (AP) — Tear gas and smoke filled the air on the southern outskirts of Los Angeles on Saturday as confrontations between immigration authorities and demonstrators extended into a second day and top Trump administration officials vowed to prosecute anyone who interferes with enforcement. Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stood guard outside an industrial park in the city of Paramount, deploying tear gas as bystanders and protesters gathered on medians and across the street. Some jeered at officers while recording the events on smartphones. 'ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,' a woman said through a megaphone. 'You are not welcome here.' One handheld sign read, 'No Human Being is Illegal.' Smoke rose from burning shrubbery and refuse in the street, and demonstrators kicked at a Border Patrol vehicle. A boulevard was closed to traffic as Border Patrol agents circulated through the area. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted a message on social media addressing 'LA rioters' and warning that interference with immigration enforcement will not be tolerated. 'You will not stop us or slow us down,' Noem said on the X platform. Immigration and Customs Enforcement 'will enforce the law. And if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.' Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers executed search warrants at multiple locations Friday, including outside a clothing warehouse in the fashion district. The action came after a judge found probable cause that the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney's Office. A tense scene unfolded outside as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away. Advocates for immigrants' rights said there were also migration detentions outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop. DHS said in a statement that recent ICE operations in Los Angeles resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants. Following the Friday arrests, protesters gathered in the evening outside a federal detention center, chanting, 'Set them free, let them stay!' Some held signs with anti-ICE slogans, and some some scrawled graffiti on the building. Among those arrested at the protests was David Huerta, regional president of the Service Employees International Union. Justice Department spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy confirmed that he was being held Saturday at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles ahead of a scheduled Monday court appearance. It was not clear whether Huerta had legal representation. Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for his immediate release. In a social media post, he cited a 'disturbing pattern of arresting and detaining American citizens for exercising their right to free speech.' The immigration arrests come as President Donald Trump and his administration push to fulfill promises of mass deportations across the country. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the activity was meant to 'sow terror' in the nation's second-largest city. In a statement Saturday, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided Bass for the city's response to the protests. 'Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,' Lyons said. 'Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation's immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.' ___ Lee reported from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
New York Post
5 hours ago
- New York Post
IDF airstrike kills head of Palestinian jihadist group that helped Hamas kidnap, murder on Oct. 7
The leader of a brutal Palestinian jihadist group responsible for the kidnappings and cold-blooded murders of the Bibas family and an Israeli-American couple was killed in an airstrike, the Israel Defense Forces announced Saturday. Asaad Abu Sharia, head of the Mujahideen Brigades, was killed in a joint operation carried out in Gaza City on Saturday by the IDF and the Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, the groups announced in a joint statement posted on Telegram. 6 The IDF and the Shin Bet announced Saturday that they killed Mujahideen Brigades leader Asaad Abu Sharia. IDF/Telegram 6 Another high-ranking leader of the group, Mahmoud Kaheel, was killed in a separate airstrike. IDF/Telegram 'During the war, the organization he led was involved in instigating terrorist attacks against Israel and fighting against IDF forces operating in the Gaza Strip,' the statement read. Another high-ranking leader of the group, Mahmoud Kaheel, was killed in a separate attack, officials confirmed. 'The terrorists of the [Mujahideen] organization took a significant part in the murderous massacre on October 7, and were complicit in the kidnapping and murder,' they added. During the deadly 2023 attack on Israel, the group aided Hamas by raiding the Nir Oz kibbutz, which was home to Shiri Bibas and her two sons, Ariel and Kfir, American-Israeli couple Gadi Hagai and Judy Lynn Weinstein, and Thai national Nattapong Pinta. 6 Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas were kidnapped from their home during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack. Yifat Zailer / Facebook The Bibas' remains were handed over to Israel in February and Hagai's and Weinstein's bodies were recovered just this week by the IDF and Shin Bet. The remains of Pinta, 36, who had arrived to work on the kibbutz a year and a half prior to the attack, were recovered from Mujahideen Saturday in the area of Rafah in southern Gaza, also as part of the special joint operation, Defense Minister Israel Katz said. Pinta, like the other Nir Oz victims, is believed to have been killed in the early days of the war. 6 Nattapong Pinta was working on a kibbutz during the Oct. 7 attacks, sending money home to his family in Thailand. AP In total, 47 people were killed on the kibbutz during the onslaught and 76 were abducted — only four of whom are presumed alive. The bodies of seven captives from Nir Oz remain in the Strip, according to reports. Pinta, who had been working on avocado and pomegranate farms before being take captive, had been sending his earnings to his wife and young son back in Thailand in the hopes of helping her open a coffee shop, the Times of Israel reported. The father was one of 46 Thais who were killed while working in Israel. 6 Israeli soldiers deployed during an army operation in the West Bank city of Nablus in late May. ALAA BADARNEH/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock Fifty-five hostages remain in capticity in Gaza, but only 20 are believed to be alive. The IDF and the Shin Bet vowed Saturday to 'to locate and thwart all terrorists … who took part in the murderous massacre on October 7 and in holding Israeli hostages captive.' In recent weeks, Israel has expanded its offensive across the Gaza Strip and announced Saturday that it had uncovered an underground tunnel route, including a command and control center run by Hamas under a European Hospital compound. 6 The IDF retrieved the body of a Thai hostage who had been held in Gaza since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Saturday. AFP via Getty Images And with a concerns growing in the region over a humanitarian crisis, the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation was forced to suspend operations on Saturday due to 'direct threats against GHF operations' by Hamas, according to reports. 'Hamas is the reason hundreds of thousands of hungry Gazans were not fed today,' the GHF said in a statement. With Post wires
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Zelenskyy: Over 40 injured in Kharkiv, these are not "retaliatory" strikes
One woman was killed and more than 40 were injured in a Russian attack on Kharkiv with guided aerial bombs on Saturday 7 June. Source: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Telegram and in the evening address Quote: "As of now, more than 40 people were reportedly injured and one killed in Kharkiv as a result of a Russian guided aerial bomb attack. Another brutal murder. Aerial bombs on civilians in the city – even near a children's railway. This makes no strategic sense. It is pure terrorism. And it has been going on for more than three years of full-scale war. This cannot be ignored. We cannot turn a blind eye to it. And this is not a game. Every day we lose our people only because Russia feels it has impunity. We need to force Russia to make peace." Updated: In his evening address, Zelenskyy said that "no matter what anyone says, these are not 'retaliatory' Russian strikes, but strikes aimed at destruction, the complete destruction of life." Zelenskyy stressed that no form of pressure on Russia should be weakened – neither the measures that have already been applied nor the methods of pressure that are being prepared. "We are working to increase Ukrainian air defence. We need positive signals from the US, specific signals on air defence. We are still waiting for a response to the offer to buy systems that can help," he said. Background: At around 17:35, Russia attacked the Shevchenkivskyi and Kyivskyi districts of Kharkiv with four guided aerial bombs. A 30-year-old employee of Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railways) was killed and at least 18 other people were injured. Four of the victims are employees of Ukrzaliznytsia. The attack damaged two buildings of a children's railway and four railway carriages, as well as houses and an outbuilding. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
