By GB News (World News) | Created at 2024-12-20 22:39:38 | Updated at 2024-12-21 02:07:14
3 hours ago
Footage from German broadcaster MDR shows the moment police confront a man lying on the floor by a vehicle.
The arrest is seen taking place after a car drove into people at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg.
The suspect is believed to be a 50-year-old Saudi Arabian doctor, according to minister president of Saxony-Anhalt, Reiner Haseloff.
A car ploughed into a busy Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg on Friday evening, leaving two dead and up to 80 injured.
Police have launched an extensive operation at the scene, with the Christmas market being evacuated and closed to the public.
Regional government spokesperson Matthias Schuppe and city spokesperson Michael Reif said they suspected it was an attack.
Footage from the cordoned-off area showed debris from festive stalls scattered on the ground.
Magdeburg's University Hospital reported it was treating between 10 and 20 patients but was preparing for more casualties.
The suspect has been identified as a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia who has been living in Germany since 2006, Saxony-Anhalt state Governor Reiner Haseloff told reporters.
German public broadcaster MDR reports that police suspect there could be explosives in the suspect's car, which remains at the scene.
A witness told German newspaper Mitteldeutsche Zeitung that she and her children had to jump out of the path of the speeding vehicle.
The witness described the area as a "fairytale" before the attack.
A burger stand operator told the same newspaper that the driver sped past his stall, describing the aftermath as "war-like".
The large market was particularly busy on the last Friday before Christmas when the incident occurred.
"This is a terrible event, particularly now in the days before Christmas," said Saxony-Anhalt Governor Reiner Haseloff, who announced he was travelling to Magdeburg.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz posted on X: "My thoughts are with the victims and their relatives. We stand beside them and beside the people of Magdeburg."
The area remains blocked off as police continue their operation, with authorities urging the public to stay away.
Injured victims are still being treated amongst the debris of the stalls, according to Bild newspaper.
The incident occurred just a day after a service marking the eighth anniversary of a 2016 Christmas market attack in Berlin, where 13 people were killed when a truck was driven into crowds.
