German politician says Halle shooting caused ‘only property damage’

Roland Ulbrich, a member of Alternative for Germany, claimed the shooting was “not even attempted murder.”

By HAGAY HACOHEN
Supporters attend an election campaign of Germany's far-right Alternative For Germany (AFD) party ahead of Saxony state elections in Dresden, Germany, August 25, 2019. (photo credit: HANNIBAL HANSCHKE/REUTERS)
Supporters attend an election campaign of Germany's far-right Alternative For Germany (AFD) party ahead of Saxony state elections in Dresden, Germany, August 25, 2019.
(photo credit: HANNIBAL HANSCHKE/REUTERS)
German politician Roland Ulbrich, a member of the right wing Alternative for Germany (AfD), took to social media on Tuesday to belittle the shooting attack on a Jewish synagogue in Halle during Yom Kippur. The house of prayer contained 51 people, the 27-year-old shooter Stephan Balliet intended to kill them all but failed to do so thanks to security measures taken by the community.
He murdered two people who were outside the synagogue before he was arrested by German security services.
Writing on social media, Ulbrich said that the shooting only caused “property damage” and that “it wasn’t even an attempted murder in the synagogue,” Mako reported.
“What’s worse?” He asked, “that a door was damaged or that two Germans were killed?”
His remarks caused an uproar in Germany, with some users saying he hinted that “Germans” and “Jews” are two separate things and that he is attempting to “minimize” the shooting.
Support for Alternative for Germany declined from 13% to 11% after the shooting, RTL/n-tv reported based on a survey of 2,5000.
Alternative for Germany leaders spoke out against the attack and called it “a monstrous crime.”