Hundreds gathered to attend a memorial service for the victims of the Magdeburg Christmas market attack in the city’s cathedral – Image: Jan Woitas/dpa/picture alliance
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Magdeburg on Saturday after a man drove a rental car into a crowd of people at a Christmas Market. Five people died in the attack, among them a 9-year-old child.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Saxony-Anhalt State Premier Reiner Haseloff were among those in attendance at a memorial service for the victims of Friday night’s attack on a Magdeburg Christmas market that killed five and injured over 200.
“Last night’s brutal attack leaves us saddened and angry, helpless and fearful, uncertain and desperate, speechless… stunned and deeply affected. We are here in the cathedral tonight with feelings that cannot be grasped,” said Bishop Gerhard Feige.
Feige continued by saying those present were there to offer each other support, adding, we cannot “let hate and violence have the last word.”
A nine-year-old child was among the five people killed in a car-ramming attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, prosecutors said.
Authorities are currently investigating the alleged Christmas market attacker on five counts of murder.
According to senior prosecutor Horst Walter Nopens, the charges also include attempted murder in 200 cases in connection with grievous bodily harm.
The motive for the attack remains unclear, but the suspect’s dissatisfaction with Germany’s treatment of Saudi refugees may have played a role, Nopens said.
White House pledges support for Magdeburg
US President Joe Biden on Saturday released a statement of support for Germany and the German people in the wake of Friday’s Christmas market attack in the central city of Magdeburg.
The statement expressed “our deepest condolences” after what Biden called a “despicable and dark event.”
The White House statement said that Biden had been in touch with German officials and pledged “all available resources and assistance if needed,” noting that the US “stands with our allies against violent terror.”
Mourners and bereaved residents have been placing tributes close to the scene of the Magdeburg Christmas market attack – Image: Jan Woitas/dpa/picture alliance
German states tighten security at Christmas markets
Several German states and cities said they are tightening security at Christmas markets in the wake of the Magdeburg attack that killed 5 people and injured 200 others.
In the capital, Berlin, the state interior minister said police would “increase their presence at the city’s Christmas markets” as a precautionary measure.
Other states, including Hesse, Bremen, Lower Saxony, Rhineland-Palatinate and Schleswig-Holstein said they had also stepped up security measures.
The eastern city of Leipzig said its mountain parade would take place on Saturday alongside the Christmas market, and that additional officers and vehicles have been deployed.
Markus Lewe, President of the German Association of Cities, explained that the cities take “terror warnings from the authorities very seriously and regularly adjust the security measures on site.”
“[At the same time] despite the high level of effort, protection can never be absolute,” Lewe stressed.
Despite calls from some quarters for Christmas markets to be closed early, Albert Ritter, president of the German Showmen’s Association said it would send the “wrong signal.”
“The way we celebrate [Christmas with] them is a sign of living democracy and peaceful coexistence,” Ritter told the Rheinische Post newspaper.
Christmas market attack suspect accused Saudi Arabia of spying on him
Talib A., the alleged perpetrator of the Christmas market attack in Magdeburg, was in contact with DW.
In March 2021, the 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia reached out through Twitter. He accused Saudi Arabia and Saudis in Germany of spying on him. He also accused the German authorities of not taking him seriously and not taking any action.
In a message to DW in October 2023, he wrote: “They refused to even open an investigation! On the grounds that there is no public interest. […] They leave a Saudi refugee exposed to intimidation, surveillance and persecution without even conducting an hour-long investigation to get at least a first impression.”
However many of his claims could not be independently verified by DW.
In November and December 2024, he offered to appear on DW and publicly present evidence. After receiving no reply, he broke off contact. (DW/NAN – 22-12-24)
