An 18-year-old Austrian national came near the Israeli consulate in Munich on Thursday with a long rifle. He was seen by security near the Munich Documentation Center for the History of National Socialism, which covers the city’s Nazi-era history. Police were alerted to an individual carrying a firearm in the Karolinenplatz area, close to downtown Munich. The suspect opened fire on the officers and they returned fire, resulting in the suspect’s death. He was armed with an old, long gun equipped with a bayonet.
Officers responded swiftly. The shooter was later pronounced dead due to his injuries.
No one else was injured in the shootout, which occurred shortly after 9 a.m. The incident took place on the 52nd anniversary of the 1972 Munich Massacre, in which eleven Israeli athletes were murdered by the Palestinian terror group ‘Black September’ during the Olympic Games. A memorial had been underway and the Israeli consulate had been closed at the time for the somber ceremony. No consulate staff were harmed in the incident.
A significant police presence, including a helicopter, was deployed to the area, but no additional suspects were found.
Israeli Ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, praised the quick response of the Munich police, stating, “Today, courageous officers prevented a potential tragedy.” Both President Isaac Herzog of Israel and his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, condemned the attack as an act of terror.
