Police operation: Fatal car attack on Magdeburg Christmas market

At least one person was killed in a suspected car attack at the Christmas market in Magdeburg. This is what Magdeburg Mayor Regina-Dolores Stieler-Hinz said. More than 50 people were injured. A driver drove into a group of people.

The German Press Agency learned from government circles in Saxony-Anhalt that evening that the man had been arrested. According to government spokesman Matthias Schuppe, it is “probably an attack.” City spokesman Michael Reif also said that according to initial information it was an attack.

According to information from security circles, the arrested suspect was not yet known to the German authorities as an Islamist. According to initial findings, the man is said to be around 50 years old and comes from Saudi Arabia.

Sirens everywhere, flashing lights, fire brigade: A dpa reporter reported that the Christmas market was swarming with ambulances and paramedics. There is a clearly double-digit number of victims. Injured people were treated at a large Christmas pyramid. Several injured people were carried away.

Intensive care beds in hospitals are ready

A spokesman for the university hospital told the German Press Agency that the first 10 to 20 patients were currently being cared for. However, one is prepared for significantly more injuries. “We are currently arming,” said the spokesman. “Intensive care beds are ready. All hospitals in Halle are preparing for a mass accident with injuries, all rescue helicopters in the greater Halle area are flying towards Magdeburg.

“The Christmas market in the city center is closed,” the police said. It is located on the Alter Markt, directly at the town hall near the Elbe. There is a large shopping center not far away. In the evening, videos were published on Platform X in which numerous emergency vehicles could be seen.

Haseloff: This is a terrible event

Saxony-Anhalt’s Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) reacted with horror to what happened. “This is a terrible event, especially now in the days before Christmas,” he told the German Press Agency. He now wants to get an idea of ​​the situation on site and is in the car on the way to Magdeburg. Haseloff was initially unable to provide any information about the victims or the background to the incident.

Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser recently repeatedly called for vigilance when visiting Christmas markets. There are currently no concrete indications of danger, said the SPD politician at the end of November. “But given the high level of threat in the abstract, we still have reason to be very vigilant and take consistent action to ensure our security.”

Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) wrote on Platform The Green Party’s candidate for chancellor, Robert Habeck, also commented on the platform: “What terrible news from Magdeburg, where people wanted to spend the Advent season in peace and community.”

The FDP chairman Christian Lindner is also dismayed by the alleged attack. “In Magdeburg, many people were victims of a fatal attack,” wrote Lindner on X. “The pictures shocked me. I think of the victims, their families and the emergency services on site.”

Around eight years after the Berlin Christmas market attack

Almost exactly eight years ago to the day, on December 19, 2016, an Islamist terrorist drove a hijacked truck into the Christmas market at Breitscheidplatz in Berlin. Twelve people were killed, and the 13th victim died as a result in 2021. More than 70 people were injured. The assassin fled to Italy, where he was shot dead by the police.

After the alleged attack in Magdeburg, police in other cities with Christmas markets are particularly vigilant. In Stuttgart, a police spokesman said that police forces had been sensitized on site. In Berlin, a spokesman said officials had been asked to pay more attention to Christmas markets.