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Racist attack in eastern Germany targets Sierra Leonian
Oct 28, 2007, 13:45 GMT
Magdeburg, Germany - Two young men described as rightwing extremists attacked a 31-year-old man from Sierra Leone, pursuing him when he fled and continuing to beat him, police in the eastern German city of Magdeburg said Sunday.
A courageous 24-year-old motorist saw the assault, stopped his car and went to the victim's assistance, before alarming the police. He then pursued the African's attackers.
Police detained two youths aged 18 and 19, both of whom had been drinking.
There have been repeated assaults on dark-skinned people in Germany in recent months, most of them in the formerly communist eastern states.
The racist attacks in the east are attributed to high unemployment, which reaches close to 20 per cent in some areas, but also to unfamiliarity with foreigners caused by the isolation of four decades of communist rule that ended in 1989.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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