German shooter planned 'massacre' in 'terror' attack in Halle - prosecutor

The shooter who killed two people and injured others at a synagogue in Halle had planned a “massacre” and wanted to inspire others to do the same, a German prosecutor said.

"What we experienced yesterday was terrorism. According to our findings, the suspect Stephan B. aimed to carry out a massacre," federal prosecutor Peter Frank said.

Frank said the suspect appears to have built several of his own weapons and that explosives were also found in his car.

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The gunman broadcast yesterday's hate-fuelled attack on the Twitch live-streaming service. During the stream, he said Jews were "the root of all problems" and blamed feminism for declining birth rates in Western countries.

Concerns mounted after the attack that the shooter had acted with others, but latest reports suggest the attacker was a "lone wolf" case. Police did not confirm reports made by other officials that additional perpetrators had fled the scene in a hijacked car.

The gunman also put an explosive device in front of the door of the synagogue as worshippers were gathering for the Yom Kippur holiday, but it failed to explode and was defused by police. German officials believe the man had a "right-wing extremist background."

He also posted a manifesto explaining his motivation and weaponry online before the attack. German media reports said the suspect saw the Christchurch massacre shooter as inspiration, but it is unclear exactly why the German radicalized or how.

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