(Image source from: AP)
German police arrested a Saudi man on Friday in connection with an attack on a car at a Christmas market. In that incident, a car drove through revelers at high speed, leaving a trail of bloodshed. At least two people were killed and more than 60 injured in the eastern city of Magdeburg, about 130 kilometers southwest of Berlin, according to emergency services. Rainer Haseroff, Prime Minister of the country, said at the crime scene, which was surrounded and protected by special police forces: “The unidentified suspect is a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia who lives in the eastern state of Saxony.” Anhalt ." "We have arrested the perpetrator of this attack, a man from Saudi Arabia. He is a doctor who has lived in Germany since 2006,” he told reporters. As far as we know now, he was a lone gunman and we don't believe there is any other danger that he left a trail of bloody victims in Government Square.
Ambulances and fire engines rushed to the scene, sirens blaring and blue emergency lights flashing as people with serious injuries lay on the ground or were taken to hospital. Screams could be heard as about 100 police, paramedics and firefighters rushed to the market, which was decorated with Christmas trees and festive lights and littered with trash. “The photos are terrible,” said city spokesman Michael Leaf. Shortly after 7:00 p.m. local time (6:00 p.m. Japan time), when the market was full of revelers, a black BMW sped past at breakneck speed, new weekly newspaper Der Spiegel reported, citing security sources. Hazrov said the Saudi drove to the Christmas market in a rental car with Munich license plates. A package was found on the passenger seat, Die Welt newspaper said, but it was "not clear whether it could contain explosives," adding: "The authorities have not yet ruled out this scenario."
Magdeburg city officials said in a Facebook post that 15 people were seriously injured, 37 were seriously injured and 16 were slightly injured. Chancellor Olaf Schulz immediately wrote to X that “the Magdeburg reports give rise to the greatest concern.” “My thoughts are with the victims and their families. We stand by you and the people of Magdeburg. We would like to thank the helpers who are working in these uncertain times." The prime minister said Schulz would visit the city next. Saturday's massacre was reminiscent of a terrorist attack in 2016 in which a Tunisian man driving a truck hit a Christmas market killed twelve people in Berlin, making it the deadliest attack in the country's history.
The 13th person later died of serious injuries in the attack, which was allegedly carried out by the Islamic State (IS) group. German Interior Minister Nancy Fasser recently warned people to be vigilant at Christmas markets, although she said authorities had not received any specific threats. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution warned that National Security considers Christmas markets "an ideologically significant target for individuals with Islamic motives." Germany has certainly experienced a number of Islamist-inspired knife attacks in recent times. Three people were killed and eight injured in a knife attack at a street festival in the western city of Solingen in August. Police have arrested a Syrian suspect in connection with the Islamic State attack. In June, a police officer was stabbed to death in Mannheim; the main suspect was an Afghan national.
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier wrote that "the peaceful anticipation of Christmas was suddenly interrupted", but warned that "the background of this terrible act has not yet been clarified". Alice Weidel, leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, focused on jihadist attacks in her anti-migrant campaign and asked X: "When will this madness end?" French President Emmanuel Macron said he was "deeply shocked" by this? attacks and "share the pain of the German people". Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also said she was "deeply shocked by the brutal attack on defenseless people," adding that "violence has no place in our democratic countries." Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he was "shocked" by the "horrific attack".
