A mass shooting occurred in a Jehovah’s Witness meeting hall in Hamburg, Germany, during which a shooter killed six people—including an unborn child—before turning the pistol on himself.
“Several persons were injured by the crime, some severely,” the Hamburg police stated in a statement published on their website on March 10. Seven people died, including the gunman and an unborn child, according to The Associated Press, despite the statement’s failure to specify the exact number of fatalities. According to reports, after killing the others, the shooter committed suicide.
The horrific shooting is the most recent in a long line of shootings over several years, some of which were carried out by far-right extremists, but no motivation for the act has been identified yet. Neo-Nazi Stephan, 27, opened fire at a synagogue in 2019, killing two people.
Jehovah Witnesses “worldwide grieve for the victims of this tragic occurrence,” according to David Semonian, a U.S.-based spokesman for the organisation. The local conjugation elders are offering pastoral care to people affected by the incident, he stated.
The suspect, identified as Philipp F., 35, is a former member of the religious group who had “ill feelings,” according to the BBC. Government and religious leaders, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, expressed their condolences in response to the terrible incident on March 9.