Alfred Herresem Research Paper

Dr. Alfred Herrhausen, arguably one of the most powerful men in West Germany, left his house in the upscale suburb of Bad Homburg, around 8:30 in the morning on Thursday, 30 November, 1989. His usual security detail consisting of three armored Mercedes-Benz with two guards in the lead and chase vehicle, who were unaware of the deadly danger that lay 550 meters in front of them. A small group of construction workers had been repairing a section of road that Herrhausen’s motorcade passed every day. Unbeknownst to the security detail, the workers had placed a sophisticated explosive device on the roadside with the intent of killing Herrhausen (Akasie, 2998). Shortly after departing the house, Herrhausen would be killed by the device, injuring
As the chairman of Deutsch Bank and confidant to the West German chancellor, he held influence within the government. As the chairman of the board of supervisors of Daimler-Benz, his efforts to expand the company’s interests created a powerful corporation with ties to the aerospace industry, high-technology industry, and defense industry. The RAF hated not just the political system of West Germany, but the economic power it held in Europe (Germany’s terrorist jolt, 1989). Herrhausen’s ties to the West German industrial complex and economic system made him an inviting target for the RAF. Immediately following the assassination, while addressing Parliament, Finance Minister Theo Waigel said the killing was, “an escalation of the irresponsible talk of the dominance of the military-industry complex (Tuohy,
The RAF, also known as the Baader-Meinhof Gang, was one of the most notorious left-wing terror groups active in Europe during the early 1970s (van Leeuwen, & Nederlands Instituut voor, 2003). During the 1980s, the RAF lost much of its support after murdering a US Soldier in order to get his ID card to enter US facilities in Frankfurt. Anti-terror experts estimate that the RAF was responsible for the killing of over 40 people and injuring approximately 100 during its 30 years in operation (van Leeuwen, & Nederlands Instituut voor, 2003). Tactically, the group achieved its objective of killing Herrhausen. Strategically, they did not achieve their desire to change the economic direction of West Germany nor persuade East Germany and other Eastern-bloc countries to abandon their desire to become more