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Pizzeria Déjà-Vu

Indians Attacked Again in Eastern German City

Two Indian men were assaulted on Saturday night outside the same pizzeria that was attacked by a neo-Nazi mob in 2007. One of the men suffered a broken nose and the public prosecutor's office is not ruling out a racist motive.

In an alarming case of déjà-vu an attack has taken place on foreigners outside the same German pizzeria where a racist assault almost two years ago caused an international outcry. The assault on two Indian men took place at the Picobello Pizzeria in the eastern city of Mügeln on Saturday night, the scene of a violent attack by a gang of Germans on a group of Indians in August 2007.

On Monday, a spokesman for the Leipzig public prosecutor's office confirmed media reports that a 43-year old Indian man had been attacked and that a 29-year-old suspect had been arrested. The spokesman said that the victim's nose had been broken and that the prosecutor's office was not ruling out a racist motive.

At least two men are reported to have banged on the door and windows of the pizzeria at around midnight after it had already shut for the night. Two of the employees, including the later victim, then ran out onto the street and after an exchange of words one of the German men took out some brass knuckles and hit the 43-year-old Indian man.

The small town of Mügeln in the eastern German state of Saxony became a symbol of ugly racist violence following the brutal attack on eight Indian men on Aug. 19, 2007. During a festival in the town the men were chased through the streets by a mob of 50 shouting "Foreigners Out!" The Indians managed to find shelter in a pizzeria owned by Kulvir Singh, one of those being chased, but the mob bashed in the doors and all eight men were injured. The incident provoked widespread condemnation not just in Germany but also across the world.