On Friday evening, a driver plowed his car into a crowd of shoppers at a busy German Christmas market, killing two and injuring at least 68 in a suspected deliberate attack.
An extensive police operation is underway in the aftermath of the market attack in the German city of Magdeburg, which occurred around 7 p.m. local time.
Reiner Haseloff, governor of Saxony-Anhalt, confirmed that a young child was among the dead.
Saxony-Anhalt interior minister Tamara Zieschang told reporters that the suspect is a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who has been in the country since 2006. Local media refers to him as Taleb. A.
The suspect is in police custody.
“This is a terrible event, especially in the days before Christmas,” Haseloff stated earlier.
Chancellor OIaf Scholz wrote on X, “My thoughts are with the victims and their families.” “We stand with them and the people of Magdeburg.”
How many people have died or injured?
At least two people were killed in the shocking incident, officials confirmed. One of those killed was a young child.
At least 68 people are believed to have been injured so far and 15 of those were hurt very seriously, according to government officials and the city government’s website.
It said 37 people had injuries of medium severity and 16 were lightly injured.
Haseloff could not rule out further deaths due to the number of people severely injured.
“Every human life that has fallen victim to this attack is a terrible tragedy and one human life too many,” Haseloff said.
Magdeburg’s University Hospital said it was treating 10 to 20 patients but was preparing for more, dpa reported.
Who is the suspect?
The suspect, a 50-year-old Saudi doctor, first arrived in Germany in 2006, according to Saxony-Anhalt interior minister Tamara Zieschang.
German media have referred to him as Taleb A. He was recognised as a refugee in 2016 and now works as a psychiatric and psychotherapy consultant in Bernburg, a nearby town.
“The perpetrator has been arrested,” Zieschang stated. “He is a 50-year-old Saudi man who first arrived in the Federal Republic of Germany in 2006. He had a permanent residence permit.
The black BMW was seen smashed up at the scene, behind a police cordon.
Authorities believe the suspect acted alone.
“As things stand, he is the sole perpetrator, so as far as we know, there is no further threat to the city,” Haseloff said at a news conference.
According to German public broadcaster MDR, police suspected explosives were in the suspect’s car, but after a closer inspection, no explosives were found.
‘Fairytale’ market turns into ‘war-like’ scenes
A witness told German newspaper Mitteldeutsche Zeitung that she and her children jumped out of the way of the speeding vehicle as it crashed into the crowd.
Prior to the attack, the anonymous witness described the area as a “fairytale”.
A burger stand owner told the newspaper that the driver sped past his stall, describing the aftermath as “war-like.”
Another witness told Bild that her boyfriend was hit and she is desperately trying to find him.
The woman, Nadine, 32, told the newspaper that she had her arm around him when the car sped towards them.
“He was struck and pulled away from my side. He was terrible. Nobody screamed. “You couldn’t hear the car.”
She claims her boyfriend suffered head and leg injuries and she has no idea where he is. “We don’t know which hospital he went to,” she told us. “The uncertainty is unbearable.”
Where is the Christmas market?
The Christmas market is located in Magdeburg, which is west of Berlin. It is the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt, with a population of 240,000.
The large market was bustling on the last Friday before Christmas, with shoppers everywhere.
It was evacuated immediately following the attack, and organisers have urged the public to avoid the area.
Footage from a cordoned-off area of the market revealed debris from festive stalls on the ground.
Just yesterday, a service commemorating the eighth anniversary of an attack on a Berlin Christmas market was held. Anis Amri’s 2016 attack killed 13 people and injured dozens more when he drove into a crowd.