ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - An Iraqi migrant stabbed the manager of a hotel hosting asylum seekers to death in the northwestern German state of Lower Saxony, local media reported on Tuesday, amid rising anti-migration sentiment and right-wing parties in the country.
The suspect, identified as a 35-year-old Iraqi man, fatally stabbed 61-year-old Afghan native “Ahmed A.” at the train station in the small town of Sarstedt in Germany’s Lower Saxony state on Monday, German newspaper BILD reported.
A, was found bleeding heavily at the train station and died from his wounds shortly after, while the assailant had fled the scene and was later caught in an operation by German special forces.
The Afghan national moved to Germany 34 years ago and ran a small hotel that provided accommodation for asylum seekers. He leaves behind a wife and six children, according to BILD, which added the suspect had arrived in Germany two years ago.
The spokeswoman for Hildesheim, a nearby city whose prosecutor has jurisdiction over Sarstedt, described the incident as “tragic,” on local public broadcaster NDR Media.
"Officials currently have no information on whether the incident will affect the operation of the refugee accommodation in Sarstedt," Birgit Wilken said. "We are continuing to collaborate with the relevant authorities."
The incident is the latest in a series of deadly stabbings in Germany and western Europe, which have fueled anti-immigration sentiment and garnered widespread support for right-wing parties, most notably in Germany with the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party winning the regional elections in the eastern German state of Thuringia on Sunday - their biggest victory to date.
In late August, three people were killed and eight injured at a festival in the western city of Solingen, in a knife attack carried out by a 26-year-old Syrian migrant with suspected links to the Islamic State (ISIS).
Berlin responded to the deadly stabbing by tightening knife laws and reducing benefits for illegal migrants.
