KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – German police arrested a 37-year-old Afghan national on Thursday on suspicion of attempting to set fire to a synagogue in the western city of Wuppertal, German media reported.
According to Deutsche Welle, the incident occurred at around 2 p.m. local time, when the suspect allegedly poured a flammable liquid onto steps outside the synagogue and set it alight.
The man also apparently attempted to set fire to a secondary entrance to the synagogue. Members of the Jewish community were able to extinguish the flames quickly, preventing the fire from spreading, according to the report.
No injuries were reported, and the damage was described as minimal.
German police said preliminary investigations indicated that the suspect acted alone.
Authorities have not disclosed further details about the suspect or a possible motive for the incident. Further investigations are expected to clarify the circumstances surrounding the suspected attack.
Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, condemned the incident and said it demonstrated what he described as the “progressive normalization of hatred towards Jews” in Germany.
Afghan nationals have previously been involved in several criminal cases in Germany, although the circumstances and charges have varied between incidents.
Following such cases, the German government resumed deportations of what it describes as “criminal migrants” to Afghanistan and reached an agreement with the Taliban on the matter.
Germany has so far deported hundreds of individuals in this category. The latest such flight took place on Tuesday, when 13 Afghan nationals convicted of crimes were returned to Kabul on a chartered aircraft. Officials have said they are seeking to accelerate the deportation process.
