After the attack on the Magdeburg Christmas market with at least five deaths, more details about the shocking act are coming to light. The alleged perpetrator's motive could have been dissatisfaction with the treatment of refugees from Saudi Arabia in Germany, said senior public prosecutor Horst Walter Nopens in Magdeburg.
The public prosecutor's office is now investigating the suspect for five counts of murder. The charge also includes attempted murder in 200 cases in conjunction with grievous bodily harm, according to Nopens. The suspect is currently in police custody. He has already commented on the crime. The Federal Prosecutor's Office is still examining whether it will take over the investigation, the security forces in Magdeburg said.
The car drove into a crowd at high speed at a Christmas market on Friday evening. According to authorities, four adults and a nine-year-old child were killed. There are a total of 205 victims, including 5 dead. Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) spoke of an “inhumane attack”. According to information from the city, the victims were taken to 15 clinics, including in Brandenburg.
City defends security concept
The suspected perpetrator is said to have gotten to the Christmas market in his car via an escape and rescue route, reported Tom-Oliver Langhans, the director of the Magdeburg police station. The journey only took around three minutes until the arrest.
According to the city, the escape route was not protected by barriers or bollards. Emergency doctors and fire departments should be able to access the square via this route in the event of accidents or other operations, explained Ronni Krug, the city's deputy for human resources, citizen services and order. However, mobile emergency services were stationed there. The concept has “proven itself over many years”.
We are dealing with a case that no organizer could expect, said Krug. The security concept for the market was last tightened in November of this year and was drawn up “to the best of our knowledge and belief”.
The AfD parliamentary group is calling for a special meeting of the Interior Committee – also to clarify possible misconduct or omissions.
Suspect received asylum
The suspect arrested that evening was Taleb A., a doctor from Bernburg who comes from Saudi Arabia. The man is an activist critical of Islam. According to information from the German Press Agency, the 50-year-old, who has lived in Germany since 2006, describes himself as an ex-Muslim. Accordingly, he submitted an asylum application in February 2016, which was decided in July of the same year. At that time, the Saudi citizen received asylum as a politically persecuted person.
Taleb A. recently made confusingly worded allegations against German authorities in social media and interviews. Among other things, he accused them of not doing enough to combat Islamism. As a spokeswoman for the health company Salus said upon request, the 50-year-old worked as a specialist in psychiatry in the penal system in Bernburg. He worked with addicted criminals and had been working at the facility since March 2020.
The man was found at the scene by emergency services after the trip and arrested. According to the current status of the investigation, a second perpetrator can be ruled out, said a police spokesman in Magdeburg.
Warning from Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia had warned Germany about Taleb A., according to Saudi security circles. The kingdom requested his extradition, but Germany did not respond. The man comes from the city of Al-Hofuf in eastern Saudi Arabia. He was Shiite. Only about ten percent of the population in the predominantly Sunni country is Shiite. There are repeated reports of discrimination against Shiites in the country. Saudi Arabia condemned the deadly attack in a statement to X – the country did not mention the suspect in the statement.
Berlin justice knew Taleb A.
According to dpa information, there were also proceedings against Taleb A. by the Berlin public prosecutor's office because of Taleb A.'s misuse of emergency calls. The “Spiegel” reported first. The defendant was accused of calling the fire department's emergency number in the Berlin police building in February without there being an emergency. Therefore, a penalty order was issued at the Tiergarten district court with 20 daily rates of 30 euros each.
The defendant lodged an objection. According to the Berlin public prosecutor's office, the defendant did not appear at the main hearing last Thursday (December 19). The objection was rejected at the request of the public prosecutor.
Scholz promises clarification
According to Haseloff, the man drove a rental car into the crowd during the attack. The “Bild” wrote, citing the police, that the journey on the site extended over 400 meters. Searches are being carried out, said a spokeswoman.
During a visit to the site, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) spoke of a “terrible, insane act”. There is no place more peaceful and cheerful than a Christmas market. “It is now important to clarify the matter with utmost precision and accuracy,” said Scholz. “Nothing should be left uninvestigated – and that’s how it will be.” You have to understand the perpetrator, his actions and motives carefully and respond to them with the criminal consequences.
Haseloff will help victims
Prime Minister Haseloff will help the victims and relatives of the death journey. His cabinet has made decisions about “financial and organizational resources,” said Haseloff. We talked to the Chancellor about what the federal government's help and support would look like.
The city of Magdeburg and charitable organizations are setting up donation accounts for the victims and those affected. “The aim is to provide those affected with support as quickly as possible,” explained the city. The federal government's victims' representative, Pascal Kober, takes care of those affected after the death trip. If necessary, psychosocial and practical help will be provided, the Federal Ministry of Justice said.
Hubs Scholz and Haseloff also took a look at the crime scene in the morning, Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD), Federal Minister of Justice Volker Wissing, Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (Greens) and Union parliamentary group leader Friedrich Merz (CDU). There was to be a memorial service in the cathedral in the evening. The Interior Ministry of Saxony-Anhalt ordered mourning flags to be displayed at all official buildings in the state until Monday. Federal Interior Minister Faeser ordered mourning flags to be displayed at the highest federal authorities nationwide.
Also sympathy from NATO and the UN
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier wrote: “The anticipation of a peaceful Christmas was abruptly interrupted by the reports from Magdeburg.” NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte expressed his condolences to Scholz. The United Nations expressed its condolences, as did EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on X that France shares the pain of the German people. He was deeply shocked by “the horror” that struck the Christmas market.
Video is said to show the suspect being arrested
A cell phone video is said to show the suspect's arrest. In the clip you can see a police officer pointing his gun at the suspect and calling for him to lie down: “Hands behind your back!” and “Stay down!” The man lies on the ground next to a black – visibly damaged – car and follows the instructions. Finally reinforcements arrive, several police officers jump out of the emergency vehicle and circle around the lying suspects.
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, the 13th victim in 2021 as a result. More than 70 people were injured. The assassin fled to Italy, where he was shot dead by the police. The Berlin police will now increase their presence at the Berlin Christmas markets.
