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Woman Hits Kiesinger in Eye in Berlin and Gets Year
By DAVID BINDER Special to The New York Times BERLIN, Nov. 7—A 29-year-old woman hit Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger in the left eye shortly before noon today at the closing session of his Christian Democratic Union's national congress in West Berlin. The back-of-the-hand blow caused slight damage to the conjunctiva, the mucous membrane that lines the inner surface of the eyelids. The assailant was Mrs. Beate Klarsfeld, who was dismissed two years ago from a state job as secretary of the French-West German youth service after she had published an article describing Mr. Kiesinger as a "Nazi" and "murderer." She was sentenced tonight to one year's imprisonment, but was set free pending an appeal. The incident caused a sensation among the 500 party delegates present. They sprang to their feet shouting "Unheard of!" and "Shame!" Bruno Heck, the Christian Democratic party secretary, seized and held the woman until ushers and security policemen arrived to lead her away into custody. Mr. Kiesinger was treated by physicians. He appeared in the hall a few minutes later wearing dark glasses, delivered a short closing speech and departed to catch an afternoon flight Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger being treated by an aide after he was assaulted and struck in the left eye at a political meeting in West Berlin. Below, his assailant, Mrs. Beate Klarsfeld, 29 is led away by security men. to Bonn. Mrs. Klarsfeld, married to a Parisian employed by the leftwing Paris newspaper Combat, evidently used credentials issued to that journal by the Christian Democratic press section to enter the congress hall. She had provoked two other incidents against Mr. Kiesingeir in the last year, shouting "Nazi!" and "Criminal!" at him while he addressed Parliament in Bonn and during his visit to Paris last spring. The Chancellor was a nominal member of the Nazi party while working in the German Foreign Ministry during World War II. Seven hours after today's incident the state prosecutor opened a summary trial of Mrs. Klarsfeld on charges of slander and assault and battery and she was sentenced. She asserted that the reason for her action was the Chancellor's "continuing fascist attitude." She was defended by a left-wing lawyer, Horst Mahler. A hearing last Monday by fellow attorneys on Mr. Mah-ler's professional ethics was declared the reason for a left-wing student demonstration that ened in the most violent clash with the West Berlin po-lice since World War II. The radicals, about 1,00) strong, had planned to inter-rupt a rally where Mr. Kiesinger spoke last night at Hasenl heide, but desisted when they learned that powerful police cordons had been set up. In his speech Mr. Kiesinger denounced the radicals as "rough, brutal and unappetizing elements bent on destroying Berlin's reputation." Except for the slapping incident, the mood of the delegates and the Chancellor was jubi-lant over the election victory; of Richard M. Nixon, whom they view as a new and power-ful ally in their effort to win a decisive majority over the Social Democratic party in next falls' election. |
