Syrian Family Beaten Up In Anti-foreigner Attack In Germany

Berlin, May 1, IRNA - A Syrian family has been beaten up in an apparent xenophobic assault in the East German town of Eisleben over the weekend, the daily Mitteldeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported in its Monday edition. The 10-member Syrian family was attacked by three men as they were visiting a fairground Sunday evening. One of the family members, an unidentified 32-year-old man, was transferred to a hospital with a concussion as a result of the attack, while three others suffered bruises to their bodies. Police arrested an 18-year-old man in connection with the assault, while the other two are still on the run. Germany has time and again witnessed brutal racist attacks in recent years as the center-right government of Chancellor Angela Merkel has tried to downplay the seriousness of the problem. Most of the racial assaults are committed by mostly young unemployed neo-Nazis who live in what used to be formerly communist East Germany. The German government has been under fire for not really cracking down on far-right violence which is aiming at mostly foreigners and leftist activists. Young neo-Nazis feel more and more emboldened to commit hate crimes, knowing that police won't charge them with an offense. Most of the suspects implicated in far-right crimes are juveniles. Hate crime experts and sociologists have repeatedly stressed Germany's political leadership lacked a clear and effective strategy to really combat neo-Nazi crimes./end