Summary of the morning
Around 9am, police officers noticed a person carrying a “long gun” in Munich in an area near the city’s Nazi documentation centre and Israeli consulate.
There was an exchange of shots, and officials later confirmed that the suspect died.
Police presence was boosted in the city.
Germany’s interior minister, Nancy Faeser, said it was a “serious incident” and noted that the protection of Israeli institutions is of the highest priority.
The Israeli consul general to southern Germany, Talya Lador, issued a statement saying she is very grateful to the Munich police for their actions and cooperation and that today’s event shows the danger of the rise of anti-Semitism.
The consulate was closed at the time of the incident.
The incident took place on the 52nd anniversary of the attacks at the Munich Olympics.
Speaking of the suspect, a Munich police spokesperson said “it was a male person and we know that he acted here with a long-barrelled gun,” Reuters reported.
In a situation update, the Munich police said that the weapon used by the suspect is an older long gun.
The police confirmed the suspect was fatally injured in the shootout, and that there are still no indications of further suspects.
2. Lageupdate:
— Polizei München (@PolizeiMuenchen) September 5, 2024
- Bei der benutzten Waffe des Tatverdächtigen handelt es sich um eine ältere Langwaffe
- Der Tatverdächtige ist bei dem Schusswechsel tödlich verletzt worden
- Es gibt nach wie vor keine Hinweise auf weitere Tatverdächtige oder weitere verletzte Personen#muc0509
Police spokesperson Andreas Franken said officers noticed a person carrying a “long gun” in the Karolinenplatz area at around 9am, the Associated Press reported.
There was an exchange of shots in which the suspect was seriously wounded, the spokesperson said.
A state minister has confirmed the suspect died.
Five officers were at the scene at the time of the incident, according to the spokesperson, who said police deployed to the area in force after the shooting.
Here are more images from Munich this morning.
The Israeli consul general to southern Germany, Talya Lador, has issued a statement saying she is very grateful to the Munich police for their actions and cooperation and that today’s event shows the danger of the rise of anti-Semitism.
The consulate general was closed today to commemorate 52 years since the terrorist attack at the Munich olympic games, she noted.
Statement unserer Generalkonsulin @TalyaLador:
— Israel in München (@IsraelinMunich) September 5, 2024
Wir sind der @PolizeiMuenchen für ihr Handeln und ihre Zusammenarbeit sehr dankbar. Dieses Ereignis zeigt, wie gefährlich der Anstieg des Antisemitismus ist. Es ist wichtig, dass die breite Öffentlichkeit ihre Stimme dagegen erhebt.…
Suspect in Munich incident has died: minister
The suspect in today’s incident in Munich died at the scene, after being shot while exchanging fire with police, Bavaria’s interior minister has said, Reuters reported.
Updated
'Serious incident': German minister says protecting Israeli institutions highest priority
Germany’s interior minister, Nancy Faeser, said there was a “serious incident” in Munich and that protection of Israeli institutions is of the highest priority, Reuters reported.
Updated
Benedikt Frank, the deputy director and CEO of the annual Munich Security Conference (MSC), which is hosted in the city, has said that his office, located in the area where the police operation is taking place, is currently sealed off.
“Our office, which is right next to the Nazi Documentation Centre in Munich’s city centre has been sealed off by the police. Our employees all find themselves in lockdown right now,” he told the tabloid Bild newspaper.
“At 9.10am there was suddenly a loud bang. We heard at least a dozen shots. We don’t know anything else at this stage. There is currently a large number of emergency personnel on the street,” he said.
Police spotted a person who appeared to be carrying a gun and fired at suspect, authorities say
The Munich police has posted another update, confirming that officers spotted a person who appeared to be carrying a gun.
Lageupdate zum aktuellen Einsatz:
— Polizei München (@PolizeiMuenchen) September 5, 2024
Durch Polizeikräfte wurde eine Person gesehen, die augenscheinlich eine Schusswaffe trug.
Die Einsatzkräfte setzten die Dienstwaffen ein, die Person wurde getroffen und verletzt.
Aktuell gibt es keine Hinweise zu weiteren Verletzten.#muc0509
The emergency services used their weapons and the person was hit and injured, the police said.
Updated
What we know so far
There is a large police presence in the centre of Munich, southern Germany, after an incident close to the Israeli General Consulate.
Police confirmed that the area around Brienner Street and Karolinenplatz, in the heart of the city, has been closed off. People have been told to avoid the area and those within the area in residential or office buildings have been urged to stay inside. A police helicopter is circling over the location believed to be looking for a perpetrator.
There are unconfirmed reports that one person, who it is thought might be the attacker, has been injured, after being shot by the police.
Munich police said the incident occurred shortly before 10 am this morning. “in the area around Karolinenplatz shots were fired by police forces at a suspicious person, and the person was hit.”
There is as yet no indication of further persons’ involvement.
According to information in the German media, the suspect is thought to have approached the Nazi Documentation Centre with a shoulder arm weapon, when police who permanently guard the building, took aim at him.
Local journalists have made reference to the fact that the incident has occurred on the anniversary of the assassinations at the 1972 Olympics, when Palestinian terrorists murdered eleven Israeli athletes in Munich.
Updated
Israel’s foreign ministry has said that its consulate in Munich was closed when the shooting occurred, the Associated Press reported.
What is the Nazi documentation centre?
Opened in 2015, the Munich documentation centre is located on the site of the former ‘Brown House’, the headquarters of the Nazi party.
On its website, the centre describes its mission:
We undertake a critical examination of the history of this location and address Munich’s historical significance as the former ‘capital of the movement.’ Taking as our starting point the historical events leading up to and during the Nazi dictatorship, we focus particularly on the impact these events have had since then—right up to the present day.
Our central concern is to use this historical perspective to take a critical look at the present and to ask questions that have a bearing on the future: What characterises a strong democracy? What can weaken it? Where are minorities experiencing exclusion and persecution today? What values and what modes of behaviour can sustain an open society based on a sense of solidarity? How do we want to remember the past?
The Documentation Center stages exhibitions, art interventions, events, and participatory projects. It also offers online programs, a Learning Center, and a library.
Educational programs invite various target groups to address the history of National Socialism and its continuities into the present.
The documentation centre is located close to the Israeli consulate.
Updated
Here are the latest images from Munich.
Süddeutsche Zeitung reports that earlier today, a suspect fired two shots at the Nazi documentation centre in Munich.
The Munich police has not commented on details of the incident, writing on social media that police shot a suspicious person.
Munich police boost presence in city
The Munich police has said it has increased law enforcement presence in the city, but that it has no information about other locations or suspects.
The police has also asked the public not to share pictures or videos of the operation, but to upload them to a portal to help investigators.
Aufgrund der aktuellen Einsatzlage haben wir die Polizeipräsenz im Stadtgebiet erhöht.
— Polizei München (@PolizeiMuenchen) September 5, 2024
Wir haben jedoch keinerlei Hinweise auf weitere Einsatzörtlichkeiten bzw. weitere verdächtige Personen. #muc0509
Updated
Munich police fire shots at suspicious person amid large operation
A large police operation is underway in Munich this morning in response to an incident near the city’s Nazi documentation centre. The centre is located near the Israeli consulate general.
Munich police said that officers fired shots at a suspicious person in the Karolinenplatz area and that the person was hit.
Earlier, the police said a helicopter was in the air to assess the situation.
In a video circulating on social media, multiple gunshots could be heard.
There are currently no indications of any other suspects in connection with the operation, police said, adding that large forces are on site.
Das sind die ersten gesicherten Erkenntnisse im Zusammenhang mit dem laufenden Einsatz:
— Polizei München (@PolizeiMuenchen) September 5, 2024
- Im Bereich Karolinenplatz kam es zu Schussabgaben durch polizeiliche Einsatzkräfte auf eine verdächtige Person, die Person wurde hierbei getroffen.
-Der Einsatzraum ist großräumig abgesperrt
