Anette von Waldow, a liberal politician, was also seriously injured and three other politicians and aides were hurt during the man’s rampage.
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The AFP reported Ms Reker, who is married to Australian professional golfer Perry Somers, has for five years run the Department of Social Affairs, Integration and Environment in Cologne.
She was campaigning Saturday at the city’s weekly farmers’ market when she was stabbed around 9 a.m. local time in the neck by a 44-year-old man, police said… She was close to the ruling Christian Democrats (CDU) of the chancellor Angela Merkel, who “expressed her shock and condemned this act”.
Schorn, the campaign spokesman, said Sunday that Reker remained hospitalized in stable condition, with her husband at her side.
The alleged attacker in Saturday’s stabbing – identified by German media only as Frank S., an unemployed house painter – has been detained on charges of attempted murder and causing grievous bodily harm.
A German politician active in helping refugees was stabbed and seriously wounded yesterday in a “racist, political” attack. “It’s not flawless, but things are moving”, she said, adding that most of the arrivals were from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Police said the suspect appears to have acted alone and had no police record. The country could reportedly face up to 1.5 million people seeking asylum by the end of the year and has struggled to find sufficient housing for the thousands of people arriving on a daily basis.
The refugee crisis is leading to the hatred and violence in the country warned the German interior minister, Thomas de Maiziere.
Over 630,000 people fleeing foreign-backed wars, terrorism, and unrest in the Middle East and North Africa have landed on European shores this year after making unsafe sea journeys from Turkey to Greece and across the Mediterranean to Italy.
“The election has suddenly taken on another dimension”, said conservative newspaper Die Welt, which predicted a “sympathy factor” for the candidate.
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The city of Cologne has a reputation in Germany for a prevalent attitude of diversity and acceptance, and Reker’s campaign platform openly appealed to this.
