Magdeburg market attack latest: Child among two dead with up to 80 injured after car ploughs into crowd in Germany
At least two people were killed and 15 are seriously injured, according to government officials
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A car ploughed into a busy outdoor Christmas market in eastern Germany, killing two people and injuring at least 68 others in what authorities suspect was an attack.
The car drove into Magdeburg Christmas market at around 7pm, when it was busy with holiday shoppers looking forward to the weekend.
At least two people were killed and 68 were injured, including 15 who were hurt very seriously, according to government officials. It said 37 people had injuries of medium severity and 16 were lightly injured.
An adult and a small child are the two dead, Saxony-Anhalt's Prime Minister Reiner Haseloff said. He couldn’t rule out further deaths because so many people were seriously injured. It was earlier reported that the death toll was 11 by German newspaper Bild.
The driver of the car was arrested. State governor Reiner Haseloff told reporters that the suspect is a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who first came to Germany in 2006.
Regional government spokesperson Matthias Schuppe and city spokesperson Michael Reif said they suspected it was an attack.
Magdeburg, which is west of Berlin, is the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt and has about 240,000 inhabitants.
An “extensive police operation” is underway and the market was closed, according to local authorities.
Pinned post: Everything we know so far
- At least two people were killed. An adult and a small child are the two dead.
- 68 injured, including 15 who were hurt very seriously.
- 37 people had injuries of medium severity and 16 were lightly injured.
- The suspect is believed to be a 50-year-old Saudi doctor who first came to Germany in 2006
- German media previously reported that police suspected explosives were in the suspect’s car. They later confirmed none were found.
Smashed up vehicle pictured
New images reportedly show the vehicle that ploughed through the crowd at the market.
The black BMW car is severely damaged, with the windscreen shattered.
‘Suspect worked as a doctor 22 miles away from Magdeburg’ - interior minister
Tamara Zieschang, interior minister for the state of Saxony-Anhalt, has shared more details about the suspect in Friday night’s attack:
“This is one of the darkest days for Saxony-Anhalt and also for the state capital Magdeburg. As things stand, we have two fatalities to mourn and a large number of injured.
“The perpetrator has been arrested. He is a 50-year-old man from Saudi Arabia, who first entered the Federal Republic of Germany in 2006. He had a permanent residence permit and thus a permanent residence permit.
“Most recently he worked as a doctor in Bernburg. According to our current information, he acted alone. There is no information on other perpetrators. Everything else is the subject of further investigations.”
Witness says driver was going ‘at least 30-40mph'
A witness has described how he saw the suspect driving at speeds of “at least 30 - 40mph” through the crowded market.
Liam Clowes, 29, told Sky News: “I turned around and initially thought the noise was the children’s carousel that was just behind us.
“All of a sudden a car comes from the right of us straight across. It was driving at a speed of at least 30-40mph and people were going over the car.
“We knew it was a serious incident as it happened. The driver didn’t apply any brakes or anything, the car was just driven through people.”
Firefighter raced to scene of the attack to help
A firefighter told how he rushed to the market to help after he heard about the attack.
“It was like something out of a bad movie,” 22-year-old Johannes told German newspaper Bild.
“I ran through the devastated market, people were lying on the left and right. And the only thing that went through my mind was: who am I going to help now? I then grabbed the injured people who didn’t have anyone with them and took them to the appropriate treatment areas.
“With a permanent marker, I wrote the words green, yellow or red on the injured people’s faces, depending on how severe their injuries were.
“The people in Magdeburg are in shock. But at the same time, they have shown that they are there for each other. I was proud when I saw how many helpers came together in such a short space of time.”
‘We are shaking’ Residents describe sickening noise of crash
Magdeburg resident Dorin Steffen told German news agency dpa that she was at a concert in a nearby church when she heard the sirens. The noise was so loud “you had to assume that something terrible had happened”.
She called the attack “a dark day” for the city.
“We are shaking,” Ms Steffen said. “Full of sympathy for the relatives, also in the hope that nothing has happened to our relatives, friends and acquaintances.”
What we know so far about the suspected driver of the SUV
Police have made an arrest after a car ploughed into a busy outdoor Christmas market in Magdeburg on Friday evening, killing at least two people and injuring at least 60 others.
Footage showed the vehicle break through barriers before speeding 400 metres through the crammed “fairy tale” section of Magdeburg market.
Here is everything we know about the suspect:
Magdeburg market car attack: What we know so far about the suspected driver
Police arrested a man after a car was driven into a crowd of people at a busy Christmas market in Magdeburg on Friday night
Police: No information yet on background to Christmas market deaths
A police spokeswoman said the force are not yet able to provide any information about the motive for the crime.
“We do not yet know the background to the crime, we are taking everything into consideration,” said a police spokeswoman when asked by reporters.
Saudi Arabia deplores market deaths
Saudi Arabia condemned the ramming attack at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg on Friday evening, the Gulf country’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
Police have arrested a suspect in the attack, which killed at least two people.
A German official described the suspect as a doctor from Saudi Arabia who was acting alone.
Saudi Arabia’s statement made no mention of the suspect.