Shooting in Hamburg's red-light district

Fire brigade officials said two people suffered injuries from bullets, and one other man hurt himself while trying to escape the attack in Hamburg's Reeperbahn.

"The men belong to the Mongols and were having dinner in the area with other members of the motorbike gang," a police spokesman told journalists.

Some of these people were attacked by members of the rival Hells Angels as they were leaving the restaurant. Several people tried to escape the scene. "Three men jumped into a taxi to save themselves" and bullets were fired shortly after, the spokesman said.

A 28-year-old man received a bullet in the kidney area and was taken to the hospital by policemen. His injuries were not fatal. Another 26-year-old was superficially hurt. The taxi driver and a 27-year-old biker were unhurt. "The taxi looks like a sieve," a policeman told dpa news agency, adding that the vehicle received seven bullets.

Officials found a knife and a gun at the place where the incident occurred. 12 people linked to the Hells Angels group have been arrested. Hamburg's prosecutors and the State Office of Criminal Investigation are looking into the incident.

Police in Germany monitor the Mongols and Hells Angels - which, like several motorbike gangs in Germany, are linked with organized crime and drug smuggling - closely. Several incidents of power struggles between motorbike gangs have occurred in the past, including violent attacks and murders.

mg/jil (AFP, dpa)