Five dead in car crash at crowded Christmas market in Germany
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The driver involved in the attack was arrested, while the authorities called the incident an assault.
A police officer stands in front of decorations at a German Christmas market involved in an apparent attack.
At least five people were killed and around 200 injured after a car crashed into a crowded Christmas market in the city of Magdeburg, capital of the central state of Saxony-Anhalt.
Governor Reiner Haseloff said on Saturday that the preliminary death toll had risen from two to five, as many more people were seriously injured.
Authorities late Friday described the incident as a deliberate attack and said the driver was arrested at the scene. An investigation is underway. AP24355783592168-1734732170.jpg
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz was among many to offer condolences shortly after the incident. His office said he would visit the scene on Saturday.
"Reports from Magdeburg suggest that something terrible has happened. My thoughts are with the victims and their families," Scholz wrote on the social media platform X. "We stand with them and the people of Magdeburg. I thank the dedicated rescuers in these anxious hours."
A police officer in tactical gear in Magdeburg speaks to a man riding a bicycle after an alleged attack on a Christmas market. A police officer speaks to a man outside a cordoned off area after a suspected attack in Magdeburg, Germany, on December 20 [Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo]
The Interior Minister of Saxony-Anhalt, Tamara Zieschang, identified the suspect as a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who arrived in Germany in 2006. He was previously unknown to security services. The Saudi Foreign Ministry condemned the attack. "The Kingdom reaffirms its position of rejecting violence and expresses its condolences and sincere sympathies to the families of the victims and to the Federal Republic of Germany," it said in a statement.
Another German state official, Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff, told local media that one of the victims was a child and the other an adult. He added that he could not say whether there would be other victims as a result of the alleged attack.
"This is just speculation at this point. "Every human life that was lost in this attack is a terrible tragedy and one too many human lives," Haseloff told reporters. He said authorities currently believe the suspect in custody is the sole perpetrator of the drive-by attack.
"As far as we know, this is a single perpetrator, so as far as we know, there is no further danger to the city," Haseloff told reporters.
Of the injured, 15 were identified as being in critical condition, according to the city's website. Another 37 people were moderately injured and 16 slightly injured.
Local media reported that the car involved was seen driving at high speed before plowing into the crowd around 7 p.m. local time (6 a.m. GMT). A police officer blocks a road near the scene of a suspected attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, on December 20.
Christmas markets are a tradition that dates back to the Middle Ages in German-speaking parts of Europe. In Magdeburg, a city of about 240,000 people, the market was set up in a town square, with stalls selling regional produce and drinks. "It's a terrible tragedy. This is a disaster for the city of Magdeburg and for the state, and for Germany in general," Haseloff said. "It's really one of the worst things you can imagine, especially in relation to what a Christmas market should bring."
Al Jazeera's Dominic Kane, who was at the scene of the alleged attack on Friday, said the Christmas market was reportedly particularly busy when the car was hit. "It's the last Friday before Christmas." "It's a tradition throughout Germany that Christmas markets are the places people go, especially on Friday nights," he said.
Kane added that media reports suggested that Saudi authorities had alerted their German counterparts to the suspect's presence before the attack.
Police searched his home after the incident for explosives or other incriminating materials, but found no other evidence. The suspect's alleged use of a rental car could provide investigators with a way to learn more about his actions before the attack. "Obviously there will be a record of when and where the car was picked up and what documents were used to get the car in the first place. Those are all lines of inquiry," Kane said.
The attack comes at a particularly sensitive time for German politics, with Scholz losing a confidence vote in parliament earlier this week, triggering a snap federal election scheduled for Feb. 23.
Kane said the incident was likely to play to the advantage of the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which has gained ground in recent regional elections.
The alleged attack on Friday night also comes eight years after a similar attack in the German capital, Berlin, on Dec. 19, 2016. In this case, a Tunisian suspect, Anis Amri, 24, intentionally drove a truck into a Christmas market in a large public square, Breitscheidplatz.
Twelve people were killed in the attack and no fewer than 56 were injured. Amri was eventually killed in a shootout in Milan after fleeing to Italy.
Raphael Bossong, a senior fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, speculated that the two incidents are likely to be linked, although it is too early to speculate.
"Unfortunately, it is a very sad anniversary and I am sure that the perpetrator chose this event for this purpose, to evoke that memory," Bossong told Al Jazeera shortly after the news broke. He added that Friday's alleged attack could have political repercussions in Germany.
"We are entering an election period and the German debate is already very polarized around these migration issues," Bossong explained. "I'm sure this will only add fuel to the fire, as sad as it is."
In particular, security measures, both in the market and on site, should be closely scrutinized.
"All Christmas markets and all these facilities in general are now supposed to be traffic-free, in the sense that no cars or trucks can enter them," Bossong told Al Jazeera. "The authorities should probably give an explanation."
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, an increasingly prominent figure on the far right, has already taken advantage of the attack to call for Chancellor Scholz to resign.
"Scholz must resign immediately," he wrote in a comment on his social media platform.
Earlier today, Musk announced that he would support the AfD party in the upcoming elections in Germany. "Only the AfD can save Germany," he wrote, expressing his support.