Till Steffen prevented law enforcers in Hamburg from releasing pictures of Anis Amri, it is claimed

There was a 12 hour delay before the images were finally shared, while Amri was at large

He faces call to step down, amid claims he was concerned about inciting racial hatred

The delay was branded 'incomprehensible' by critics

A German politician is facing calls to resign over allegations that he prevented police from sharing pictures of the Berlin truck terrorist when he was at large.

Reports in Germany claim that Till Steffen prevented law enforcers in Hamburg from releasing pictures of Anis Amri, despite him being the most wanted man in the world after Monday's terror attack.

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Amri, 24, was named as a suspect on Wednesday after his wallet was found in the lorry which ploughed into a crowd of people at a Berlin Christmas market, killing 12 people.

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Till Steffen has been criticised in Germany amid claims he prevented police from sharing images of terror suspect Anis Amri when he was at large

It has been alleged that Steffen, who is head of the judicial authority in Hamburg, prevented the pictures being circulated because he feared sharing images of Islamist terror suspects will incite racial hatred.

Newspaper Bild reported that police were able to give a description of the killer, but not show the public what he looked like because of privacy concerns.

Insiders claim he was worried the pictures of terror suspects incite racial hatred.

Joachim Lenders, chairman of Hamburg's regional police force, is quoted by Bild stating: 'It is incomprehensible that investigating authorities are thrown such truncheons.'

The Green politician, who is head of the judicial authority in Hamburg, only granted an exception after a call from the newspaper, following a 12 hour delay, it reports.

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Amri was killed by police in Italy this morning, two days after he emerged as the prime suspect in the terrorist attack on a Berlin Christmas market

Website shz.de reports that authorities are concerned that abusive comments can be posted on Facebook appeals, because comments cannot be disabled.

It quotes Hamburg CDU politician Richard Seelmaecker, who said: 'Anis Amri has allegedly murdered twelve people, but instead of using all means to search for him, Hamburg's green lawmaker is more concerned about comments on Facebook.'

He called for a judiciary committee review to be called.

CDU faction leader André Trepoll branded Steffen a 'security risk' today, Bild reports, and the Alternative For Deutschland party (AfD) has called for him to resign.

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Amri was killed by police in Italy this morning, two days after he emerged as the prime suspect in the terrorist attack.