A car drove into a crowd at the Christmas market in Magdeburg. The authorities assume an attack. There is said to be one dead and more than 50 injured.

A car drove into a group of people at the Magdeburg Christmas market. According to the spokesman for the state government and the city, the initial investigation indicates that it was an attack. According to police there is at least one dead.

MDRReporter Hagen Tober reported from Magdeburg about “a lot of injuries”. The AFP news agency, citing the emergency services, said 60 to 80 were injured. According to the dpa news agency, the first ten to 20 injured people are being treated at the Magdeburg University Hospital.

However, they are preparing for significantly more injuries. “We are currently upgrading,” said a spokesman for the university hospital, “intensive care beds are ready.”

Driver in custody

The arrested suspect is said to be WDR/NDR-Information about a 50-year-old man who comes from Saudi Arabia. The man is said to have previously rented the car that was used in the crime.

Again MDR and the dpa news agency learned from government circles that the driver was arrested. According to police, it is still unclear whether it was a lone perpetrator. The car in which the perpetrator drove into the crowd “at least 400 meters above the Christmas market” was still on site. According to information from Spiegel, the car was a black BMW that drove into the crowd at 7:04 p.m.

A large number of emergency services and fire departments are on site. The Christmas market was closed. The head of the Christmas market called for people to leave the city center.

Prime Minister on the way to Magdeburg

Saxony-Anhalt’s Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff (CDU) reacted with horror to what happened at the Magdeburg Christmas market. He reported that he now wanted to get an idea of ​​the situation on site and was in the car on the way to Magdeburg MDR.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz wrote on X: “The reports from Magdeburg suggest something bad.” His thoughts are with the victims and their relatives. “My thanks go to the dedicated rescue workers in these anxious hours.”

Union Chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz also reacted with dismay. “This is very depressing news from Magdeburg,” he wrote on X. “My thoughts are with the victims and their families. I would like to thank all the emergency services who are taking care of 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?”

Faeser spoke of an “abstractly high threat situation”

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 abstractly high threat situation, we still have reason to be very vigilant and take consistent action to ensure our security.”

Almost exactly eight years ago to the day, on December 19, 2016, an Islamist terrorist drove a truck into the Christmas market on 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.