BERLIN – The public prosecutor’s office in the western German city of Göttingen
told
The Jerusalem Post on Monday that authorities, including Interpol, are
seeking the arrest of a Syrian medical student for killing an Arab-Israeli woman
last month.
According to Andreas Buick, a spokesman for the Göttingen
prosecutor’s office, an arrest warrant has been issued for the murderer of 26-
year-old Suwad Hamza. The suspect is being pursued internationally, as he has
ostensibly fled Germany, although it is unclear if he is currently in
Syria.
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A trace from the 24-year-old suspect – in his seventh semester as a
medical student at Göttingen University – was found on Hamza’s body. An autopsy
showed that she was choked to death.
Hamza was found dead in her student
dormitory in December. When asked about motive, Buick said there was no sexual
or political background to the murder.
Rather, it took place in the
context of a “personal relationship” between the suspect and
victim.
Buick added that local investigators have questioned many
witnesses acquainted with Hamza and the suspect.
Hamza’s body was sent
back to Israel on Christmas day; her family lives in Kafr Kana, near Nazareth.
The victim was also in her seventh semester as a medical student at the
university, having arrived in Germany threeand- a-half years ago.
Buick
said the suspect would face a life sentence in a German prison if
convicted.
If he has fled to an EU member country, he could face
extradition to Germany with criminal legal proceedings taking place in
Göttingen. If he has fled to a non-EU country, the location of proceedings will
depend on whether the country agrees to extradite him.
The public
prosecutor’s office declined to name the suspect because of “investigatory
tactical” reasons. The office has been in contact with the Israeli Embassy in
Berlin, Buick said.