Scientific processing of the NSU murder starts in Hamburg

Scientific processing of the NSU murder starts in Hamburg

Hamburg-Bahrenfeld, Deutschland - The Hamburg Citizenship has commissioned a research team to scientifically process the NSU murder of Süleyman Taşköprü. Taşköprü was shot on June 27, 2001 in his father's fruit and vegetable shop in Hamburg-Bahrenfeld by the right-wing extremists Uwe Mundlos and Uwe Böhnhardt. He was 31 years old and left a woman and a little daughter. Taşköprü was one of a total of ten murder victims of the National Socialist underground (NSU), which murdered between 2000 and 2007 in Germany and especially people with a migration background. In addition to Taşköprü eight Turkish -born and a Greek -born small business owner and a policewoman, this murder series.

The investigation by the security authorities was criticized in the initial phase as inadequate, since initially was determined in the area of ​​the victims and the connection between the actions was not recognized for a long time. The research work in Hamburg is special because, in contrast to other federal states, there were no parliamentary committees of investigation. Hamburg is the only federal state in which the NSU has murdered without such a committee examining the murders. The scientific processing was decided by the citizens as early as 2023 and is expected to take three years.

scientific approach

The research team is headed by Constantin Goschler from the Ruhr University Bochum and consists of Daniela Hunold (University of Economics and Law Berlin), Charlotte Schmitt-Leonardy (University of Bielefeld) and Wolfgang Seibel (University of Constance). These researchers have access to hundreds of file folders, including 500 files with 250,000 sheets from the State Office for the Protection of the Constitution. The aim of the study is to analyze the police investigations and the criminal lawsuit of murder in city history and nationwide context.

A central aspect of the investigation is why the investigation aimed for so long in the wrong direction and why the victim's Turkish family was initially suspected. Goschler emphasized that the scientific processing is not about naming culprits, but gaining a deeper understanding of the investigative and communication structures at that time. Talks with those affected and with participants are also planned to get a comprehensive insight into the circumstances at that time.

financing and political agreement

Before the upcoming election on March 2, 2025, the citizens must release 900,000 euros in research funds in order to finance the scientific processing. The agreement was reached across the parties, with the exception of the AfD. Hamburg thus pursues a new, independent approach to the processing of the NSU murders, which differs from the existing parliamentary investigation committees in other federal states.

Süleyman Taşköprü remains present in the culture of remembrance because a street in Bahrenfeld bears its name. So far, the authorities had failed to adequately analyze the common context of right violence and terrorism, this research is now aiming for a step towards a comprehensive and honest discussion. The city of Hamburg shows that it is willing to learn from the mistakes of the past and to prevent future violence against people with a migration background.