Thursday, November 20
The trial begins today for the 19-year-old defendant accused of seriously injuring a Spanish tourist at Berlin’s Holocaust Memorial in February. Investigators say the accused attacked the man from behind at about 6 p.m. local time on February 21 by stabbing him in the neck with a knife.
Emergency workers saved the 30-year-old victim through rapid intervention and an emergency operation, including placing him in an artificial coma. Although his injuries were life-threatening, he survived, and no one else was hurt in the attack.
The accused is on trial for attempted murder, dangerous bodily harm and attempted membership in a foreign terrorist organisation. It is believed that the alleged attacker travelled from Leipzig to Berlin on the day of the attack to commit the crime.
According to police, at the time of arrest, the defendant testified that he wanted “to kill Jews,” which is why he committed the crime at a memorial that commemorates the six million Jews murdered by the National Socialists.
Found a few hours after the crime with blood-stained hands in the vicinity of the memorial, he has been in pre-trial detention ever since. Heavily armed officials escorted the accused to the trial before the Berlin Chamber Court.
