A Syrian refugee confessed Saturday to setting fire to the German refugee shelter he was staying at in an attempt to frame it on nationalists.
The arson attack Thursday in the town of Bingen-Sponsheim was first reported as another nationalist attack on a migrant center in Germany. The basement of the building was sprayed with swastikas in an attempt to make it look like a political crime. Two firefighters and four residents suffered minor injuries.
The city quickly organized a rally against racism and xenophobia while police worked under the assumption the attack was committed by nationalists.
The 26-year-old Syrian later confessed Saturday to have ignited the fire, citing “a lack of hope for the future” as his motivation. the Local reports his fellow refugees turned him in to authorities after a reward was offered for leads in the investigation.
The city still went ahead with its demonstration Sunday, and 500 people showed up, according to German newspaper Die Welt.
Attacks on current or future refugee shelters have become a daily occurrence in Germany since more than one million migrants flooded the country in 2015. A total of 924 acts of violence against the shelters were recorded in 2015, compared to 199 in 2014.
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