Car hits crowd at Christmas market in Germany; at least 1 killed, dozens injured, officials say
A car plowed into a busy Christmas market, killing at least one person and injuring dozens more, and authorities suspected an attack, the deputy mayor of the German city of Magdeburg said on Friday.
German news agency dpa reported that the driver of the car had been arrested, citing unnamed government officials in the state of Saxony-Anhalt. Regional government spokesman Matthias Schuppe and city spokesman Michael Reif said they suspected it was a deliberate act.
Reif said “multiple people were injured,” but he did not give an exact number.
“These pictures are horrific,” he said. “My information is that a car drove into tourists at the Christmas market, but I can’t say yet from which direction and how far.”
Magdeburg University Hospital said it was treating 10 to 20 patients, but was preparing to admit more, dpa reported.
A spokesman for the local rescue department told AFP that a total of 60 to 80 people were injured.
The sirens blared by first responders clashed with the market’s festive decorations, including ornaments, stars and leafy garlands adorning stalls. Video taken from the scene in a cordoned off part of the market showed debris on the ground.
Craig Stennett/Getty Images
“This is a terrible event, especially on Christmas Eve,” said Saxony-Anhalt state premier Rainer Haseloff, who was on his way to Magdeburg. , but could not immediately provide any information about the victims or the reasons behind the incident.
Young Principal Scholz Posted on X: “My heart goes out to the victims and their relatives. We stand with them and the people of Magdeburg.”
Magdeburg, located west of Berlin, is the capital of the state of Saxony-Anhalt and has about 240,000 residents.
The suspected attack comes eight years after the attack on a Berlin Christmas market. On December 19, 2016, an Islamic extremist Driving a truck through a crowded Christmasresulting in 13 deaths and dozens of injuries. Days later, the attacker was killed in a shootout in Italy.
Christmas markets are an important part of German culture, an annual holiday tradition cherished since the Middle Ages and successfully exported to much of the Western world. In Berlin alone, more than 100 markets opened late last month, bringing the aromas of mulled wine, roasted almonds and sausages to the capital. There are many other markets across the country.
German Interior Minister Nancy Feser said late last month that there were no concrete signs that Christmas markets were in danger this year, but it was wise to remain vigilant..
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