On a special holiday for the Jews there are indications of a threat to a synagogue in the Ruhr area. The police are pulling together. After anxious hours, the all-clear comes.
Hagen / Berlin – After the large-scale police operation in front of the Hagen synagogue, the investigation into the background will continue on Thursday. “We are now in particularly close contact with the Jewish community.
The people are concerned, “said a police spokesman on Thursday night. At the same time, the protection of the church has been strengthened. Two police cars were parked in front of the building that night. The officers were armed with submachine guns.
On Wednesday afternoon, strong police cordoned off the synagogue after there had been indications of a “possible danger”. The street in downtown Hagen, where the synagogue is located, was blocked 250 meters away. The police spokesman said that a large number of forces were deployed.
A service planned for Wednesday evening on Yom Kippur, the highest Jewish holiday, was canceled at short notice. Neighbors who wanted to go to their apartments in the vicinity had to show their identity card. Dog handlers with several police dogs searched the synagogue and the neighboring parish hall, which also houses a doctor’s office. Obviously they found nothing in the buildings.
Memories of the terrorist attack in Halle
The memories of the terrorist attack in Halle in Saxony-Anhalt on Yom Kippur two years ago were also quickly awakened. At that time, the Day of Atonement fell on October 9th. An armed right-wing extremist tried to break into the synagogue in Halle by force. When the door held out, he shot two people nearby and injured two others while trying to escape.
At the Hagen synagogue, the police did not find any evidence of an actual risk, it was announced that night. There is also no evidence that other Jewish communities in North Rhine-Westphalia could be endangered.
The police did not say what the possible danger was, whether there was a possible bomb threat. It will continue to be investigated, said the police spokesman. dpa
