Germany: Did Yesterday's Deadly Knife Attack Have a Religious Motive?

There is an interesting update in today’s German press regarding yesterday’s deadly knife attack near Ulm that left a 14-year-old German girl dead and her 13-year-old friend wounded. The man charged for the crime is a 27-year-old Eritrean man. It seems the deceased victim was a member of the Alevi Muslim religious community of Turkey, many of whose members have migrated to Germany. The Alevis are a marginalized religious community in Sunni-majority Turkey. The assailant comes from a country almost equally divided between Christians and Sunni Muslims.

Today, both the Interior Minister of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg and the Turkish ambassador to Turkey are denying any religious or political motive behind the attack.

The below article from today’s Ulm News is translated by Fousesquawk.

 https://www.ulm-news.de/weblog/ulm-news/view/dt/3/article/89379/.html

Interior Minister Strobl sees no religious or political background after deadly knife attack

6 December 2022 by Ralk Grimminger

On Tuesday afternoon, the Baden-Wuerttemberg interior minister, Thomas Strobl, along with the Turkish ambassador, Ahmet Basar Sen, visited the scene of the deadly knife attack in Illerkirchberg. Strobl promised a quick and seamless explanation of the terrible act, which has also shaken the community. Meanwhile, the Illerkirchberg mayor, Markus Häussler, reiterates, “We have no place here for xenophobia.”

The Baden Wuerttemberg Interior Minister, Thomas Strobl, commemorated the 14-year-old victim together with the Turkish ambassador, Ahmet Basar Sen, who traveled from Berlin. The girl is German with a Turkish migration background. Strobl insisted that the act of the 27-year-old Eritrean suspect had no religious or political background according to initial findings. The Turkish ambassador, Ahmet Basar Sen, visited the family of the murdered girl. The family belongs to the Alevi religious community and the Alevi religious community of Ulm with 400 members. A memorial service was held there for the girl, who died in the clinic.

The Alevi religion is considered an independent humanistic religious community. The families of many members come from Anatolia. They already have been living for several years in Germany and have German citizenship. That (includes) the family of the murdered girl in Illerkirchberg. The Turkish president, Tayyip Erdogan, and his government are no fans of the Alevis. Under Erdogan, the Alevis are in a difficult situation. Up to now because, a few weeks ago, Erdogan began an initiative for a panel to take care of problems and opportunities for Alevis- possibly because he needs votes for his re-election. With 20 million members, the Alevis are considered the second-largest religious community in Turkey. However, they feel marginalized by the State and the ruling AKP (Justice and Development Party) party.