Radical ideologies. - Quiet tribute for Rouven Laur - worry involves protests
A female cop, with tears streaking down her face, stands along with her colleagues at the Mannheim marketplace. Meanwhile, a guy knels weeping beside a sea of flowers placed in remembrance of the attack. Footage online reveals the emotional impact of Mannheim's deadly knife attack, stretching far beyond the city's limits.
The tragic incident claimed the life of 29-year-old police officer, Rouven Laur, who was severely injured during the assault on Friday. Five others were also injured as a 25-year-old Afghan targeted participants of a protest by the Pax Europa (BPE); a movement critical of Islam.
The knife attack has ignited a Political debate over stricter deportations, sparking worries over potential clashes during demonstrations within the city. Today, one week later, German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visits Mannheim to honor Rouven Laur.
The police force in Baden-Württemberg urged for a minute of silence at 11:34am, the time of Laur's unfortunate demise. Steinmeier expressed his intention to leave a wreath at the crime site.
Baden-Württemberg's Prime Minister, Winfried Kretschmann (Greens), and Interior Minister Thomas Strobl (CDU) are also attending the moment of silence. Local authorities encouraged state ministry staff, scholars, and parliamentarians to partake in the ceremony.
Controversy surrounded the city's decision to restrict public gatherings following the attack, with the Right-wing party AfD filing a legal challenge against the prohibition on events at the marketplace. On Friday, the Karlsruhe Administrative Court granted the emergency application submitted by the AfD. The city appealed the ruling afterward. Now, the decision is awaited by the Baden-Württemberg Administrative Court.
"We intend to demonstrate two days before the European election exactly where Islamic terrorism has occurred to send a clear political signal across the country," declared Markus Frohnmaier, AfD's state chairman.
Weeks before the catastrophe, tensions arose when an apolitical group suggested a vigil against violence and hatred. Concurrently, the Young Alternative organized a demonstration on the marketplace. The association's motto read "Remigration would have stopped this incident!" Demonstrators from both sides were seen in violent encounters, armed with red flags and mini-rockets, with heated altercations carrying on. Shouting "Nazis out" resonated through the market.
Five victims of the attack still struggle with the events a week later, according to Stefanie Kizina of Pax Europa. "We're all still in shock," she stated. "One must pull oneself together, process it. (...) One has always lived with the danger, but one had assumed that it would never be that bad."
Michael Stürzenberger, aged 59, sustained grave injuries in the attack and had to be re-admitted to the hospital. He will likely be out for four to eight weeks.
The movement's safety will be bulked up, adding more protection in future events, per Kizina. "There will be no more events without protection netting. The police officers are now paying more attention to us."
German Police Union Chairman, Ralf Kusterer, feels a sense of deep sorrow and empathy for Rouven Laur's death but is also swamped with frustrations after a week. "People are disappointed," he states about the officers' general sentiment. "The frustration with politics is enormous." Post such incidents, there are frequent political discussions and demands, but no actual change materializes. Talks around police training, protection equipment, and wound treatment are deemed important.
Status of the officers involved in the attack is undisclosed by a Mannheim Police representative: "We won't comment on the matter." The Mannheim Police Headquarters President, Ulrike Schäfer, only reported, "Our colleagues who worked with Laur and were present at the unfortunate event are presently being psychologically cared for."
The recent knife attack has sparked a fierce discussion about more stringent expulsions. In response to this tragic event, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) plans to allow the deportation of serious offenders back to Afghanistan and Syria. According to Scholz, "Those who commit serious crimes or pose a terrorist threat should be deported, even if they come from Syria and Afghanistan." The precise method for carrying out this reinstatement of deportations is not yet understood. The Federal Interior Ministry is currently developing the practicalities and has started consultations with Afghanistan's neighboring nations.
