Attacker in Berlin skullcap case turns himself in to police

BERLIN – A 19-year-old Syrian asylum-seeker has turned himself in to police after his violent attack on a man wearing a Jewish skullcap in Berlin caused outrage across Germany.

Police spokesman Winfrid Wenzel said the young Syrian showed up with his lawyer at a police precinct Thursday. The 21-year-old victim, an Arab Israeli, caught Tuesday's assault on video. It quickly went viral and reopened a debate about growing anti-Semitism in the country. Even Chancellor Merkel condemned the assault sharply.

The video shows the attacker whipping the Israeli with a belt while shouting "Yehudi!" or Jew, in Arabic.

The victim, Adam Armoush, said he's not Jewish but wore the skullcap as an experiment because he didn't believe a friend who told him it's too dangerous to wear one in public in Germany.