After a bloody attack in downtown Kiel with several injuries, the exact background is still unclear. "Investigations into the motive are ongoing," said a police spokesman on Tuesday of the German Press Agency. A possible homophobic background will be further examined. Witnesses and victims had stated that the painted fingernails of a man who was traveling in a group of three on Saturday night probably triggered the momentous argument.

According to the police, there were initially insults from another group of men. Then, during a physical altercation, at least one man stabbed him with a knife. A 23-year-old who came to mediate suffered an initially life-threatening stab wound to the upper body. His condition is now stable. Two men from the attacked group suffered lacerations on their arms. The third of the trio was injured from blows to the face. The public prosecutor's office and the criminal police are investigating the attempted murder. The search for the three or four men from the attacking group has so far been unsuccessful.

According to the police, 700 people took part in a vigil at the crime scene on Monday evening. Meanwhile, a witness said that shortly before the attack, another group nearby had been aggressively approached. Here, too, it was about appearances, in this case about clothing, said the police spokesman. This may have come from the same men who had committed the robbery. These should be in their mid-twenties and probably of southern European origin. Prosecutors offered a $2,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the perpetrators.

There have been several high-profile cases of hate crime in Germany in recent months. In Münster, for example, a 25-year-old transman was fatally injured on the sidelines of Christopher Street Day. In Bremen, a trans woman (57) was attacked by young people on the tram and seriously injured.