German Tamil stabbed outside Sri Lankan Exhibition in Frankfurt

[TamilNet, Monday, 08 December 2008, 17:50 GMT]
A 38-year-old German Tamil, who visited the exhibition conducted by the Sri Lankan consulate in the city of Frankfurt in Germany was stabbed allegedly by Sinhala thugs deployed by the Consulate Sunday evening. The victim, Krishnan Sinnathamby, a father of two, was seriously wounded in his hand and was operated at the City Hospital Frankfurt-Höchst Sunday night. Talking to TamilNet Monday evening, the lonely visitor to the exhibition, said he struggled hard to escape from the knives of a group of Sinhala speaking men who attempted to stab him in his stomach and neck.

"The attackers fled the site when a Tamil who was parking his car near the place came to help me," Mr. Krishnan Sinnathamby told TamilNet.

"I can identify the attackers. They were inside the Exhibition hall and were together with the organisers and looked like thugs brought down by the Consulate," Krishnan Sinnathamby said.

The victim, who has been living in Germany since 1994, visited the exhibition for almost two hours and left the exhibition site around 8:00 p.m. He was surrounded by the attackers while waiting to be picked up by a friend around 8:15 p.m.

"At least two of the attackers appeared in front of me. A group of persons, who were following the attackers, also surrounded me from behind as one of the attackers in front of me pointed his knife targeting my stomach. In my effort to defend myself, I somehow managed to outmaneuver him, but the other attacker targeted my neck with his knife. I had no option other than blocking the knife with my hand as I shouted for help. Suddenly, the attackers vanished from the site as a Tamil friend who was parking his car came to help me," Krishnan said.

The attackers were talking in Sinhala as they began to attack him, according to Krishnan.

"When the man who came to help me saw that I was badly wounded, he rushed me to the hospital."

Krishnan had not visited the site on Friday or Saturday. There was no Tamil exhibition on Sunday. The attackers had randomly chosen a Tamil to express their violent anger after their propaganda exhibition was defeated by the Tamil exhibition at the same site.

"I was thoroughly checked by the security guards at the entrance. I was alone and I was not engaged in any controversies. When I took photos of the exhibition, some of these men came to me and said photographing was prohibited. They also inspected my camera. Then, one of them said it was not necessary to delete the photos that I had already taken and asked me not to take any more photographs. I respected their request." he said.

The German Police has begun inquiries into the episode.

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