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Kidnapping and murder of Hanns Martin Schleyer | |
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Part of German Autumn | |
Location | Cologne, West Germany (kidnapping) France (murder) |
Date | 5 September 1977 18 October 1977 | –
Attack type | Kidnapping, murder |
Deaths | 5 |
Victim | Hanns Martin Schleyer |
Perpetrators | Red Army Faction (RAF) |
The kidnapping and murder of Hanns Martin Schleyer was one of the left-wing terrorist attacks called German Autumn in 1977.
German industrial leader and former Nazi SS officer Hanns Martin Schleyer was kidnapped on 5 September 1977, by the Red Army Faction (RAF), also known as Baader-Meinhof Gang, in Cologne, West Germany. It was intended to force the West German government to release Andreas Baader and three other RAF members being held at the Stammheim Prison near the city of Stuttgart. Later, Lufthansa Flight 181 was kidnapped and abducted to Somalia to support the terrorist demands. West German GSG9 forces liberated the hostages on 18 October 1977, this made the news on radio, after which three RAF leaders died in prison. Hanns Martin Schleyer was killed after being a hostage for 43 days.[1]