Man wielding ax in Hamburg shot dead by police – DW – 06/16/2024

Police in the northern German city of Hamburg shot dead a man on Sunday who tried to attack passers-by with a pickaxe, authorities said.

The unrest took place in the city center area of ​​St Pauli, near where 40,000 Dutch fans were marching, ahead of the Euro 2024 soccer match against Poland.

Police play down any links to football

Police said the man came out of a pub with the ax in his hand and was brandishing it at officers in a “threatening” manner.

“According to current knowledge, there is no connection with football,” a police spokesperson told the DPA news agency.

Police said the man was also carrying an incendiary device, possibly some type of Molotov cocktail.

Media reported that police used pepper spray on the attacker before deploying a gun.

Warning shot fired first

A police officer fired a warning shot before several more shots were fired and the man fell to the ground, local media reported.

The man is being treated for his injuries, police wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Security has already been stepped up ahead of Sunday's football match with the deployment of hundreds of Hamburg and federal police officers.

Germany is hosting the month-long Euro 2024 tournament which began on Friday evening.

Police in eastern Germany shot dead a man on Friday who went on a rampage, stabbing a man to death, before throwing a house party for the championship's opening match. There he stabbed three other people, two of them seriously.

Police said Sunday that the motive for the attack was still unclear.

mm/ab (dpa, Reuters)

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