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Turkey heaped pressure on German authorities yesterday to speed up an investigation into a fire that killed nine people, amid suspicions that it may have been started by neo-Nazis.
It was an uncomfortable suspicion that the people of Ludwigshafen did not want to deal with as they mourned the deaths on Sunday of the Turks, including five children and a pregnant woman, in what is being called the city’s worst blaze since the Second World War.
Most preferred to marvel at the survival of eight-month-old Onur, dropped by his parents into the arms of a policeman who was thrown to the ground by the impact. “We understand that the officer is seen as a hero but he doesn’t want to be identified,” Dieter Klein, a police spokesman, said. “He was just doing his duty.”
Onur’s parents were being treated in hospital for burns and respiratory problems. The nagging question of who or what started the blaze would not go away yesterday.
“We don’t want another Solingen,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, said. He was referring to a strikingly similar incident in 1993: an arson attack on a Turkish family in the steel town that killed five and ruptured relations between Germans and the Turkish community. Only after sluggish detective work did police arrest four neo-Nazis.
Ludwigshafen, too, has its neo-Nazi hangouts. An industrial city in southwest Germany, it has always employed large numbers of Turks in its chemical factories. As youth unemployment has grown, so has resentment. “We hope that this was not an act based on hostility towards foreigners,” Mr Erdogan said. “We want light shone on this incident as soon as possible.”
Four detectives are to be sent from Turkey and Mr Erdogan will visit victims tomorrow. About 20 people were said still to be in hospital, three on the critical list.
Cranes were used yesterday to lift the remains of the roof, to ensure that the whole structure would not collapse. The fire appears to have swept up a wooden staircase, cutting off the people on the third and fourth floors.
A Turkish website named seven of the nine dead as Medine Kaplan, 50, her daughters-in-law Hülya Kaplan and Döne Kaplan and their children, Kenan, Karanfil, Ilyas and Dilara. According to the Turkish newspaper Sabah, Belma Özkapli died when she jumped out of the window. Police confirmed that one woman died when she missed the rescue blanket after leaping through the smoke and flames.
So far the only suggestion that the fire was started deliberately has come from a seven-year-old child named Aylin. Speaking on television she said: “There was a man who lit his cigarette lighter, lit a stick and then put it under a pram in the hallway.”
As for Onur, he is being cared for by his uncle. It will be some years, say friends, before he will find out the truth about his family — that on one evening he lost his two-year-old brother Ilyas, his aunt and two cousins. And that he is lucky to be alive.
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I applaud TimesOnline for having this news, it is not something to applaud for, but considering that BBC etc. did not mention this (I could not find it), I felt I needed to. Very selective journalism I say. Or is it that a quite likely racist, fatal arson (9 death) that also wounded so many people is not news-worthy in our world? depending on the victims??? Mustafa, I would prefer being 'optimistic' about this like you, but not following recent anti-Turkish smear campaigns. There was a hate graffiti found on the wall probably written just before the attack, and the building was attacked before. Disregarding this arson will only result in more arsons and other racist actions.
Deniz, Indiana,
Also, Mustafah, we do not spell Mustafa that way, is 'h' the initial letter of your last name, or am I to assume that you are not a Mustafa from Ankara, Turkey? I am not aware of any Turkish news of 'Nazis did this' Nazis did that (blabbering about it, and I read quite a lot of Turkish news when I am here in United States (11 months a year)). Certainly when one encounters xenophobic or racist acts in Germany, one thinks first about neo-Nazis, they will be the primary suspects in such cases, and the graffiti I mentioned had the Nazi symbols, it is definitely not a far stretch to link it to neo-Nazis. The officials were too quick to dismiss everything, which makes one to wonder why. Also, Ludwigshafen is a base for neo-Nazis, says Antifa-Mannheim. See this: http://www.irr.org.uk/2008/february/ha000011.html Is it pure coincidence that the building houses a Turkish cultural association? I don't think they can be found everywhere.
Deniz, Indiana,
Just read some excerpts from turkish newspapers... oh man, it's a shame. Full of "Nazis did that...", police has established a "Nazi task force", "Turkish police is gonna find the truth". I know that the Turks are not so happy with the "NO" from Germany for their Europe-Joining-Thing, but come on... Just 2 little children who played with fire and blaming it on somebody else, could be possible, eh?
Funny though, the families were Alevis - and they are quite angry that the Turkish Primeminister Erdogan is boosting his popularity with this populism and their tragedy.
mustafah, Ankara, Turkey
To those who continuously state that Turkey "kills" the kurds: (1) Can you please reveal your true identity so that others on this forum can also know who you really are, as we know very well who you are!
(2) Turkey does not "kill" or "target" Kurds, but infact eradicates PKK Terrorists. The PKK is a terrorist organisation recognised by your respective governments including the US, UK, Russia, EU etc. The US Government also supplies us, Turkey, the details of the location of these terrorist and we just vapourise them into the thin air. Turkey knows very well how to distinguish between ethnic Kurdish Citizens and terrorists! Just read about what the PKK did to the Kurdish population recently in Diyarbakir and also how Turkish military helicopters rushed the injured to hospitals!
Finally, it is blatantly obvious that Germany is having trouble in fighting xenophobia, hence, they should just accept such problem and look for solutions rather than shift the blame onto thrid parties.
Berk, Istanbul,
Brendon,
When there are Americans, no other nation including Germans can be blamed for cold blooded murder or genocide. From Hiroshima to Vietnam, Chile to Korea, Iran, Iraq, Afganistan, wherever Americans have been there is mass murder!
Rewriting history is another American talent!
Ali, Herts,
not shocking that a rediculous comment like that would come from a turkish national, a citizen of a country who was formed in the turkihs spirit of destruction of humanity, and civilization. some one whos country till this day bombs kurds in iraq, occupies cyprus, denies the genocide of the armenians and greeks and only perpetuates the cycle of hate by teaching revisionist history to its young schoolchildren and breeding hate which resulted in the killing of Hrant Dink only a year ago.. one of the most recent murders of the armenian genocide which has been taking place since the 19th century wherever turks have roamed.
brendon , Springfield, illinoise
Statistically, because of low bitrh rate, the German population will have disappeared within 50 years, and the counry will have to rely on immigration more and more. If that's how some people react to change, we can expect worse.
Laurent, Reading, UK
I guess nothing coming from the Europe should make us surprised. This continent is the homeland of civilization, modernization, prosperity, human rights for own privilaged people but also the homeland of imperialism, oligarchy, fascism, colonisation of the others...
P.S: There is no Neo or veteran Nazi. Nazi is Nazi produced from generation to generation by German society...
Kemal, Istanbul, Turkey
Erik, what a narrow minded comment, killing is ALWAYS wrong, only prehistoric inhumane people, would make a comment such as yours.
Louisa, Winchester,
Erik Persen, let me guess...you are 67 years old and your father was..German!
antifascist, istanbul, turkey
Wow Eric,
Great of you to keep the stereotype of the racist European alive.
I guess that means all Norwegians must be jerks because their ancestors were Vikings who pillaged and raped.
Jes, Toronto, Canada
I guess Norway is famous for supporting terrorists all around the globe. Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka and PKK in Turkey.
It is not not humane to compare this vicious crime with terrorism, let alone European.
Brian, Toronto, Canada
What worries me most is that some people find it 'normal' that people can be killed (see Erik's comment). Has not Europe suffered enough from fascism?
nyoped, new york, usa
The turks have been killing kurds and others for years now, so, what are they complaining about?
Erik Persen, Oslo, Norway
Western values in action?
Lester Ness, Kunming, China