Turkey, Germany vow continued fight against xenophobia

By Ali Murat Alhas

ANKARA (AA) - The Interior Ministries of Turkey and Germany on Tuesday issued a joint statement, condemning motives of the last month’s deadly xenophobic and islamophobia terror attacks in the German city of Hanau.

The statement said Ankara and Berlin were shocked by the incident that left 10 people dead and five others injured, adding both countries did their best to support the victims of the incident.

Noting that over the past few months, it was the third act of terrorism affiliated with the far-right in Germany in which multiple Turks were victimized, both sides said they were determined to continue to fight extreme political views and xenophobia.

It said the perpetrators of the attack sought to plant seeds of hatred among the public; however, Germany and Turkey would never allow this to happen and the restrained reaction of the people affected was an encouraging factor.

“We are aware that the best way to thwart a conflict among different religions and world views relies on cooperation,” the statement said, adding the path to peace would be in line with learning more about the diversity of others.

The German perpetrator, Tobias R., who allegedly killed himself and his mother in the immediate aftermath of the attack, was found to have contacted other far-rightists on issues of racism and conspiracy theories via the Internet.