German synagogue gunman live-streamed Yom Kippur attack that left two dead

The suspected gunman in the Yom Kippur synagogue attack in Halle, Germany, broadcast his rampage on the live-streaming platform Twitch, in the latest instance of rightwing extremists using mass shootings to create and promote real-time propaganda. About 35 minutes of video was broadcast live on Twitch, an Amazon-owned platform that is primarily used by video game players, the company confirmed Wednesday. Twitch removed the video but copies had already been downloaded and shared elsewhere on the internet, highlighting the challenges faced by platforms attempting to stymie the dissemination of such material. The Halle attack is the second live-streamed rightwing extremist attack this year, following the March massacre of 51 Muslim worshippers in Christchurch, New Zealand, which was broadcast on Facebook Live. The alleged gunman in the April synagogue shooting in Poway, California, shared a Facebook Live link in a manifesto posted on the extremist message board 8chan prior to his attack, suggesting that he planned to live-stream the shooting that left one dead and two injured. “Live-streaming enables extremists to amplify their actions, but even more so, bringing their supporters and others that they want to inspire on the journey with them,” said Oren Segal, director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Centre on Extremism. “It is an interactive radicalisation tool that also helps spread content that may inspire the next attacker after them.” Aspects of the video appear designed for this exact purpose. The video opens with the suspect introducing himself in English to the camera as “Anon” and declaring himself an anti-Semite, antifeminist and Holocaust denier. The use of English suggests he had an international audience in mind, and a reference to falling birth rates is in line with popular white nationalist tropes. “Anon” is internet lingo for an anonymous user of forums such as 4chan and 8chan. “These folks are preparing their social media strategy as they prepare their weapons,” Segal said. “That’s the modern terrorist.” New Zealand privacy official slams Facebook as ‘liars who enable genocide’ The Halle gunman also appears to have emulated the Christchurch and Poway shooters by preparing a “manifesto” and posting it online prior to his attack. Three documents describing the motivation and weaponry for the attack were posted on the site Kohlchan, according to the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation at King’s College London. The documents, which include a link to the live-stream of the shooting, are vehemently anti-Semitic and racist. They state that the attack’s timing – on Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement and one of the religion’s high holidays – was intentional. They also assert the gunman considered a mosque or “antifa ‘culture’ centre” as alternate targets. On Wednesday afternoon, the attacker, wearing a steel helmet and boots, placed home-made explosive devices in front of the Halle synagogue and attempted to enter it, security sources said. Several shots were fired. Halle Jewish community leader Max Privorotzki said there were between 70 and 80 worshippers inside the synagogue at the time and that its security personnel prevented his advance into the building. At some point, the attacker shot dead a woman outside the synagogue. It was unclear whether she was associated with the synagogue or just passing by. Local media reported that shortly after the attacker failed to enter the synagogue, a grenade or improvised explosive device was thrown into an adjacent Jewish cemetery. A second victim – a man – was then killed at a nearby kebab shop. Norway mosque shooter Philip Manshaus killed stepsister over her ‘Chinese origin’, police say The suspected gunman’s video showed people being fired upon and a man lying behind a refrigerator in the kebab shop being shot several times. It appears to have been filmed on a camera attached to a helmet. The attacker then fled the scene and apparently threatened a taxi driver and two other people, before crashing a car and being detained. The suspect was identified only as Stephan B, in line with German privacy laws. Security sources said he is a 27-year-old German man with an extreme-right background. “We worked with urgency to remove this content and will permanently suspend any accounts found to be posting or reposting content of this abhorrent act,” said Brielle Villablanca, a spokeswoman for Twitch. The video was viewed by just five people during the attack, the company said, and by about 2,200 people in the 30 minutes after the attack had ended and before Twitch took it down. Despite this limited initial audience, however, the video has since been broadly disseminated on Telegram, an encrypted messaging app that has become a haven for white nationalists and other far-right extremists. Twitch said that it had shared the video’s hash – a unique fingerprint for a photo and video that can be used to detect it automatically – with an industry consortium to help prevent the spread of the video onto other platforms. A spokesperson for Facebook confirmed that the company was working to remove and block the video from its platforms. Additional reporting by DPA and Bloomberg

German synagogue gunman live-streamed Yom Kippur attack that left two dead

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Suspect arrested after attack on holiest day of Jewish calendar Assailant live-streamed attack after publishing anti-Semitic ‘manifesto’ online

Suspect arrested after attack on holiest day of Jewish calendar

Assailant live-streamed attack after publishing anti-Semitic ‘manifesto’ online