A car drove into a crowd at the Christmas market in Magdeburg. The authorities believe it was an attack. Prime Minister Haseloff spoke of at least two dead and 60 injured.At least two people were killed in a suspected attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg. As Saxony-Anhalt’s Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) confirmed, an adult and a small child died when a car drove into a crowd.In addition, there were at least 60 injured, including many seriously injured. Haselhoff travelled to Magdeburg after the attack.
According to the news agency dpa, the first ten to 20 injured people are being treated at Magdeburg University Hospital. However, they are preparing for significantly more injuries. “We are currently gearing up,” said a spokesman for the university hospital, “intensive care beds are ready.” Some of the injured were flown to hospitals in Halle.
driver in custody
A suspect was arrested, as Haselhoff confirmed. He is a doctor from Saudi Arabia who came to Germany in 2006 and lives in Saxony-Anhalt. Haselhoff assumed that the attack was carried out by a lone perpetrator. Investigations are now underway, including a possible motive. According to the Prime Minister, the man drove a rental car into the crowd.
According to information from security circles, the 50-year-old was not previously known to the German authorities as an Islamist. He is said to have most recently worked as a doctor in the field of psychotherapy in Saxony-Anhalt. According to research by WDR and NDR, he is said to be a prominent figure in the Saudi exile community and was considered a contact person for asylum seekers, especially women. He has had asylum status as a political refugee since 2016.
Statements that the man is said to have made on social media until recently provide evidence that he may have felt persecuted and that he feared an Islamization of Germany.
No explosive device was found in the suspected perpetrator’s vehicle, as Tracy Hering of the Magdeburg police explained. The area around the car had previously been cordoned off because the police suspected there was an explosive device in it. According to information from Der Spiegel, the vehicle was a black BMW. According to the report, the man sped “at least 400 meters across the Christmas market” at 7:04 p.m.
Emergency services and the fire brigade are on site in large numbers. According to MDR, the city has formed a crisis team in the town hall. The police have set up a citizens’ hotline for relatives and a portal where information such as pictures and videos can be uploaded . Magdeburg’s mayor Simone Borris announced a joint memorial service in Magdeburg Cathedral on Saturday at 7 p.m.
dismay and sympathy
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz wrote on X: “The reports from Magdeburg suggest something terrible is about to happen.” His thoughts are with the victims and their families. “My thanks go to the dedicated rescue workers in these anxious hours.” Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier was also dismayed. “The anticipation of a peaceful Christmas was abruptly interrupted by the reports from Magdeburg,” he explained on X. According to Haseloff, Scholz will travel to Magdeburg on Saturday.
Vice Chancellor and candidate for Chancellor of the Greens, Robert Habeck, spoke of “terrible news from Magdeburg, where people wanted to spend Advent in peace and community.” Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) called the news from Magdeburg “deeply shocking.” The emergency services are doing everything “to care for the injured and save lives.” Her thoughts are with the victims and their families. “The security authorities will clarify the background.” Faeser assured the state government of Saxony-Anhalt of federal assistance in the investigation. She also plans to travel to Magdeburg with Scholz on Saturday.
Friedrich Merz, the CDU/CSU’s candidate for chancellor, also expressed his condolences: “This is very depressing news from Magdeburg,” he wrote to X. “My thoughts are with the victims and their families. I would like to thank all the emergency services who are caring for the injured on site.”
AfD leader Alice Weidel wrote on the platform: “The images from Magdeburg are shocking! My thoughts are with the bereaved and injured. When will this madness end?”
Macron says he is “deeply shocked”
There were also initial reactions from abroad. French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his condolences to the victims. He wrote on X that he was “deeply shocked” by the “horror that struck the Christmas market in Magdeburg that evening.” “My thoughts are with the victims, the injured and their families. France shares the pain of the German people and expresses its full solidarity.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has also condemned the alleged attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg. She was “deeply shocked” by the “brutal” attack, she wrote on X.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen lamented the “brutal and cowardly” act online and wrote: “This act of violence must be investigated and severely punished.”
