Neo-Nazis admit fatal arson attack

TTwo members Of a German neo-Nazi group yesterday admitted carrying out the arson attack late last month in the northern town of Molln in which three Turks were killed.

The Federal Prosecutor's Office said the two men, Michael Peters, 25, and Lars Christiansen, 19, had acted alone in the firebomb attacks on two houses containing several Turkish families.

Mr Peters, said to be the leader of a neo-Nazi group in the Molln area, was arrested last week along with nine others on suspicion of belonging to a terrorist organisation responsible for a spate of firebombings against asylum-seekers' homes. Further suspicion of his involvement in the deaths of two Turkish girls aged 10 and 14 and a 51-year-old grandmother in Molln was confirmed by testimony given by Mr Christiansen, a fellow member of the group who was arrested on Sunday night, the Prosecutor's Office said.

In their alleged confessions, Mr Peters and Mr Christiansen said they had hurled firebombs at two separate buildings housing Turks in Molln on the night of 23 November. In addition to the three deaths, several Turks were badly injured. Mr Peters admitted phoning the police and fire services shortly after the blazes were under way and signing off with the words 'Heil Hitler]'

The killings sparked nationwide protests and calls for the offenders to be dealt with more swiftly and harshly under the law. The government has announced a ban on the Nationalist Front neo-Nazi organisation and its intention to toughen laws against right-wing extremists. To date, the attacks against foreigners have shown little sign of abating, with several more incidents reported over the past few days.