Iranian on trial for attempting to set fire to Bochum synagogue
An Iranian man has been brought to trial on charges of attempting to set fire to the Bochum synagogue in Germany.
A 36-year-old Iranian-German man who tried to set fire to a synagogue in the city of Bochum last November has been arrested by police and taken to prison. His trial is set to begin on September 12 after months in prison and will continue until the end of November.
The regional court said on Monday, September 4, that the man had been ordered to throw a Molotov cocktail at the synagogue. According to the German newspaper Bild, the order to attack was issued by Iranian government officials, and since the synagogue is under heavy police protection, the suspect became frightened and threw the Molotov cocktail at a school next to the synagogue. The man had intended to take an acquaintance with him to do this, but the man not only refused his request, but also reported it to the police.
According to German state television, the suspect in the case was in contact with a man named Ramin Yektaprast, who was involved in the shooting at the old synagogue in Essen. Ramin Yektaprast is responsible for an operational command for attacks in Germany on behalf of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, who fled to Iran two years ago. He is also the founder of the Mönchengladbach branch of the Hells Angels motorcycle and rock club and is being prosecuted under an international arrest warrant for murder in rock circles.
