U.S. tourist beaten for Nazi salute in Germany

American man could face prison time for gesture while police seek attacker

An American tourist in Germany was beaten up by a passerby after he began giving the Nazi salute outside a cafe in Dresden, police said Sunday.

The incident occurred at about 8:15 a.m., Saturday as the man left a cafe called Europe in the Neustadt district of Dresden, police said in a statement. The district is known as a liberal part of the town and a popular meeting spot for students.

The tourist was identified only as a 41-year-old American man who was “severely drunk,” according to police. He suffered minor injuries, while the stranger who assailed him fled the scene, police said.

Police said the U.S. national is under investigation for violating German laws prohibiting Nazi symbols and that they are still seeking the passerby for causing personal injury, according to The Associated Press.

The Nazi salute — the right arm straight and angled slightly up, palm down — was used as a greeting and a way of expressing devotion to Adolf Hitler under the Third Reich. Germany outlawed the salute after the Second World War, along with Holocaust denial and other symbols and signals associated with the Nazis. A conviction can carry a prison sentence of up to three years, although courts often impose fines instead.

The Dresden incident occurred just a week after two Chinese tourists were detained for giving Nazi salutes outside Berlin’s Reichstag. The two tourists were fined nearly $600 each. Similarly, a 30-year-old Canadian tourist was detained in 2011 after being photographed giving the Nazi salute outside the Reichstag. He also received a fine.