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UPDATE 02:43AM PST, THURSDAY: Investigators believe last night’s attack was racially motivated. The local interior minister said, ‘Our current insights give enough ground for a xenophobic motive’.

The shooter was named by police as 43-year-old Tobias R. His surname was not given. The perpetrator shot himself and his 72-year-old mother at home, police said. They also confirmed that he possessed a hunting licence.

Officials have said they are treating the attack as a terrorist incident. The investigation is on-going.

According to newspaper Bild the killer expressed extreme rightwing views in a letter of confession he left behind.

Far-right extremism has been on the rise in Germany over the past 12 months. Last week, police arrested 12 men, including one of their own officers, in an investigation into an extremist cell suspected of planning attacks on politicians, asylum-seekers and Muslims.

EARLIER STORY 22:10PM PST, WEDNESDAY: Two shootings in the western town of Hanau, Germany, have left at least 11 people dead and others injured, according to local police.

Nine people died in the attacks on two shisha bars at around 10pm on Wednesday night. A massive hunt was launched for the perpetrators and the suspect was found dead at his home, along with the body of a second person, according to police.

The motive for the attack is unclear. The investigation is ongoing.

German national Bild reports that the suspect was a German citizen with a firearms licence, and that ammunition and gun magazines had been found in his car. The paper also claims that multiple victims are of Turkish origin.

Hanau, with a population of 100,000, is a commuter town 25km east of Frankfurt.

The attack comes four days after another shooting in Berlin, near a Turkish comedy show, which killed one person.

The Berlin Film Festival and European Film Market get underway today in the German capital. The festival has issued this statement regarding the incident and security measures.

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