Germany: Vandals cut down tree honoring victims of neo-Nazi terrorists

An oak tree that was planted in the eastern German town of Zwickau, Saxony last month in memory of the first victim of the neo-Nazi National Socialist Underground (NSU) group, the 38-year-old florist Mr Enver Simsek, who was of Turkish origin, has been cut down. Mayor Pia Findeiss released the information on 7 October.

"The felling of this tree testifies to the intolerance here, to the lack of understanding of democracy, and to contempt for the victims of this terror and their relatives," the Social Democratic politician said of the crime which German counter-intelligence is now involved in investigating. German Government spokesperson Steffen Seibert called the action shocking.

Seibert called for the incident to be investigated and for the victims of the murder spree committed by the NSU to be commemorated. The German authorities have attributed 10 murders to the group, all committed between 2000 and 2007.

Most of the victims were immigrants. The only surviving member of the terrorist organization, Beate Zschäpe, was convicted last year and sentenced to life in prison.

Her colleagues Uwe Böhnhardt and Uwe Mundlos committed suicide when the trio was discovered by police in 2011. The two men fired nine rounds at Mr Simsek on 9 September 2000 in Nuremberg as he was sorting flowers in his vehicle.

Mr Simsek succumbed to his injuries two days later. The NSU was active in Zwickau and went undetected for years.