Several dead more than 200 injured in car attack on German Christmas market

Several dead, more than 200 injured in car attack on German Christmas market

Five people have been killed, including a child, and more than 200 injured after a car drove into a crowd at a Christmas market in the eastern German city of Magdeburg, officials said, BBC reported.

Many people were critically injured, Reiner Haseloff, the premier of Saxony-Anhalt state, told reporters on Saturday. German media reported 41 critical injuries.

Haseloff told reporters on Friday that the suspect - who was arrested - was a 50-year-old Saudi citizen who arrived in Germany in 2006 and had worked as a doctor.

He said a preliminary investigation suggested the alleged attacker was acting as a lone wolf. He could not rule out further deaths due to the number of injured.

The suspected attacker's motive is unclear. Social media and posts online appear to suggest he had been critical of Islam.

Footage from the scene shows numerous emergency services vehicles attending while people lay on the ground.

Further footage then emerged of armed police confronting and arresting a man who can be seen lying on the ground by a stationary vehicle.

Unverified video on social media purports to show a car plunging into the crowd at the market.

City officials said around 100 police, medics and firefighters, as well as 50 rescue service personnel, rushed to the scene.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who traveled to the city on Saturday, described the attack as a "dreadful tragedy" as "so many people were injured and killed with such brutality" in a place that is supposed to be "joyful".

Originally from Saudi Arabia, he arrived in Germany in 2006 and in 2016 was recognized as a refugee.
 

source: tehrantimes.com