Turkish parliament official condemns Germany attack

By Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's deputy parliament speaker on Thursday condemned the right-wing terror attack in Germany that killed nine people, including five Turkish nationals.

"It is important to fight such racist attacks across the world," Levent Gok told lawmakers in the parliament.

"I condemn and curse this attack."

He called for efforts to protect Turkish citizens living abroad against xenophobic attacks.

"We must pursue this issue with full force," said Gok.

The perpetrator, who targeted migrants at two cafes in Hanau, near Frankfurt, was identified by security forces as Tobias R., 43, German daily Bild reported.

He and one other person were found dead in an apartment in Hanau following a German special operations raid.

Initial police findings showed the perpetrator was acting with “xenophobic motives”, according to Hesse's Interior Minister Peter Beuth.

"The Federal Public Prosecutor has taken over the investigation. It is treating this as a suspected incident of a terrorist attack," he told reporters on Thursday.

Hanau is located around 20 kilometers (12 miles) east of Frankfurt and has a population of nearly 100,000.