Kosovo Albanian Arrested for Attack on US Troops

A 21-year-old Kosovo Albanian has been detained in Germany after allegedly opening fire and killing two US soldiers at Frankfurt's airport.

(KosovoCompromise Staff) Thursday, March 03, 2011

The men had just flown in from Britain and were about to travel to the US military base at Ramstein, a hub for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Two airmen have been killed and two were wounded during a shooting incident today at Frankfurt International Airport," the US Air Forces in Europe said in a statement.

"The names of the deceased are being withheld until 24 hours after notification of next of kin. German authorities have the shooter in custody. The incident is currently under investigation," the statement added.

According to Beta news agency, the shooter was identified as Arif Uka.

US President Barack Obama condemned it as an "outrageous act".

He said the US would spare no effort in investigating the shootings to "ensure that all the perpetrators are brought to justice".

"I think the American people are united in expressing our gratitude for the service of those who were lost," Obama said.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel condemned the "terrible incident".

"I would like to assure you that the German government will do our utmost to investigate what happened," she told journalists in Berlin.