According to preliminary data, the attack was carried out by a former member of Jehovah’s Witnesses. executions at the community church in the Alsterdorf district of Hamburg on Thursday evening.

According to Spiegel magazine, citing anonymous sources, this is a man unknown to the authorities, aged 30 to 40 years. The Hamburg police did not confirm this information.

It is noted that one of the seven killed in the tragedy near the building of the event of Jehovah’s Witnesses is considered to be the culprit of the attack.

“We have found a dead person at the community center in Grosse-Borstel who we believe could be the perpetrator,” the Hamburg police said in a Twitter post, adding that the investigation is ongoing “to rule out the possibility of other perpetrators being involved.”

According to the German press, the police found one of the victims on the second floor, away from the other victims. “It is not yet clear if this is the attacker, but there is no evidence that the attacker or attackers fled,” a police spokesman said.

Recall that as a result of yesterday’s attack, eight people were killed and many were injured. According to eyewitnesses, the assailant entered the building where the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ event was being held around 9:00 pm (local time) and opened fire.

In the tweets, the Hamburg police asked citizens not to spread baseless assumptions and rumors about the incident, and to avoid offensive and racist messages.

Auch wir arbeiten mit Hochdruck. Wir bitten Diskussionen zu Tätern oder zum Tathergang, sowie günstigie Beleidigungen & andere Kommentare ohne Bezug zu unterlassen. Ihr würdet uns die Kommunikation zum laufenden Einsatz in #Grossbortel make it easier#shiseray #hh0903

— Hamburg Police (@PolizeiHamburg) March 9, 2023

Soltz’s message about the tragedy

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said today that his thoughts were with the victims of the “cruel act of violence”.

German Interior Minister Nancy Fesser also reacted via Twitter, saying she was “shocked by the horrific act of violence perpetrated against the community of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Hamburg.”

Ich bin erschüttert über die terrible Gewalttat in einer Gemeinde der Zeugen Jehovah in #Hamburg. Meine Gedanken sind bei den Opfern, ihren Angehörigen & den Gemeindemitgliederen. Die Hintergründe werden mit Hochdruck ermittelt. Thank you very much @PolizeiHamburg & Rettungskräfte.

— Nancy Faser (@NancyFaser) March 10, 2023

Finally, the Jehovah’s Witness community in Germany also issued a statement regarding the incident, expressing “deep sorrow.”

“The religious community is deeply saddened by the horrific murder committed against its members at the Kingdom Hall in Hamburg after a religious ceremony. People died, others were seriously injured.