The police in Hamburg confirm on Twitter that several people are dead, and several are seriously injured. The RTL website writes that eight people are dead and that several are injured. Among the injured, two are said to be seriously injured. According to information to the German newspaper Spiegel, the perpetrator is a former member of Jehovah’s Witnesses. A large area around the crime scene has been cordoned off. Photo: Jonas Walzberg / DPA Shots fired at the Jehovah’s Witnesses congregation The incident took place in the district of Alsterdorf, which is located in the north of the city, at around 9pm on Thursday evening. According to German police, shots have been fired at an assembly hall belonging to Jehovah’s Witnesses. The congregation must dispose of the entire building in question. A large number of people have been shot at an assembly hall belonging to Jehovah’s Witnesses in Hamburg. Photo: Jonas Walzberg / AP Believes the perpetrator may be among those killed According to RTL and Tagesschau, a special unit from the Hamburg police happened to be near the meeting room at the relevant time. They are said to have heard gunshots from one of the upper floors of the building. The police confirm that they found a person in the upper part of the building. – We found a lifeless person in the building in question who we assume may be the perpetrator, the police in Hamburg reported on Twitter on Friday night. They add: – In order to rule out the involvement of other perpetrators, we are investigating broadly further. The police have cordoned off a large area around the street Deelböge where the shooting is said to have taken place. Residents warned in emergency SMS Several hospitals in the area have been put on alert. Shortly after the shooting, residents in the area received an SMS alert from the authorities about “extreme danger”. They were told not to leave their apartments. In the message, the police wrote to the residents: “Seek cover in a building as soon as possible”, and “Only call us in an extreme emergency, so that the telephone capacity does not collapse”. Heavily armed police in the area where the shooting happened. Photo: Jonas Walzberg / AP At the time when the SMS was sent out, it was unclear whether one or more perpetrators were on the run. The motive for the shooting is not known, the police said. They ask that people do not spread unconfirmed messages or rumours, or speculate about the motive. The mayor of Hamburg Peter Tschentscher says the incident in Alsterdorf is shocking, and sends his thoughts to the relatives. – My deepest condolences to the families of the victims. The emergency services are working hard to track down the perpetrator(s) and to find the cause, he writes on Twitter. The shooting is said to have hit an assembly hall belonging to Jehovah’s Witnesses. Photo: Jonas Walzberg / DPA Near the Seamen’s Church Anna Lina Gundersen, who works in the Norwegian Seamen’s Church in Hamburg, is shaken by the shooting. – This is absolutely shocking. It’s happening just 20 minutes away from Sjømannskirken, Gundersen tells news. She is a diaconal employee at Sjømannskirken. She says that she has little insight into what is happening, but follows the news. Heavily armed police are searching the area. Photo: Jonas Walzberg / DPA Notification of the shots must have reached the emergency services just after 9 p.m. when the emergency center received several calls reporting shootings. A resident says that it sounded “like fireworks”.
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Shooting in Hamburg – At least eight dead – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
